This Practice Note includes a selection of recent Q&As addressing common questions faced when dealing with Family law issues. The Q&As are arranged by topic and supplement and link to other more detailed content within Lexis®+ UK Practical Guidance and are intentionally brief. It is anticipated that a brief Q&A will be most helpful when you need a quick overview of an issue, its likely impact and signposting to more detailed practical guidance. If you are not able to find the answer to your question, detailed practical guidance is signposted in each topic. The Q&A content on Lexis®+ UK Practical Guidance is date stamped, stating the law at the date of publishing. Although new Q&As are added to this Practice Note as they become available, individual Q&As are not maintained and state the law as at the date indicated in each case. For details of all Q&As available within Lexis®+ UK Practical Guidance, see: Family Q&As—overview. Practice and procedure Q&As The following Q&As consider non-court dispute resolution (NCDR), litigants in person, appeals, service and applications under Part 18 of the Family Procedure

Family allowance is a legacy term used in UK and Irish legal practice to describe the state cash payment for children now known as Child Benefit. In England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, “family allowance” referred to payments under the Family Allowances Acts (notably the Family Allowances Act 1945), which were replaced by Child Benefit under the Child Benefit Act 1975 (implemented from 1977). In Ireland, the equivalent payment is Child Benefit under the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005; earlier legislation used “children’s allowances” (Children’s Allowances Act 1944).The phrase is not a current term of art. It commonly appears in older statutes, case law, maintenance orders, trust deeds, settlements, leases and employment documents. In modern statutory interpretation and contractual construction, a reference to “family allowance” will ordinarily be read as Child Benefit (or the Irish equivalent) unless the context shows a distinct contractual or discretionary allowance.Practical significance includes identifying the payee for Child Benefit when assessing financial provision, child maintenance, residence of a child, or related immigration and tax interactions. Usage is broadly consistent across the UK and Ireland, though the governing legislation and terminology differ as noted.

Family arbitration is a form of non-court dispute resolution in family cases.

This Practice Note outlines the process of arbitration in family cases, which has been available for financial disputes since March 2012 and for children issues since July 2016. It considers the applicable rules, the role of a solicitor acting for a party in reaching a binding arbitration and the key benefits of arbitration. It also details the coverage of the Institute of Family Arbitrators (IFLA) scheme and the powers of the arbitrator. For practical guidance on the role of the courts in relation to arbitral awards or determinations, see Practice Note: Family arbitration—the role of the courts. What is arbitration? Arbitration is a form of formal dispute resolution. The parties enter into an agreement under which they appoint a suitably qualified person (an arbitrator) to adjudicate their dispute and make an award. Arbitration has been available for family law disputes since 26 March 2012 following the launch of the Institute of Family Law Arbitrators (IFLA). The IFLA is a collaboration between Resolution, the Family Law Bar Association (FLBA), the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) and

This Practice Note outlines the role of the courts in relation to family arbitration. In family cases, arbitration will take place under the Institute of Family Law Arbitrators (IFLA) scheme. The courts retain jurisdiction over a family arbitration award or determination and will uphold the award or determination as long as it is within accepted parameters, and therefore give effect to the parties’ autonomy. For practical guidance on, inter alia, the process of arbitration in family cases, the key benefits of arbitration, the coverage of the IFLA scheme and the powers of the arbitrator, see Practice Note: Family arbitration—introduction. Following Law Commission recommendations to update the Arbitration Act 1996 (AA 1996) and introduce measures to strengthen arbitrator immunity, improve the efficiency of cases and clarify the powers of the court, a draft Bill based on the Law Commission recommendations was introduced to Parliament and received Royal Assent on 25 February 2025. The Arbitration Act 2025 (AA 2025) amends AA 1996 from 1 August 2025 by virtue of the Arbitration Act 2025 (Commencement) Regulations 2025, SI

A family benefit trust (FBT) is a form of employee benefit trust (EBT) and can be drafted as an employer-financed retirement benefits scheme (EFRBS). While an EFRBS is primarily intended to provide retirement benefits, an FBT is more normally used to provide benefits to an employee's family after the death or retirement of the employee.

This term may be used to describe a number of different forms of business vehicle, but they may share a number of common characteristics and features in relation to their governing structure.

Many family businesses start out with quite an informal governing structure in place; the family members have an understanding of their roles and relationships with each other, and decisions are made quickly at the kitchen table. The nature of many family businesses is that they are informal and flexible and their objectives are often driven by doing the best for the family according to the family's values, rather than purely for the profit of the owners. However, as the business grows and more members of the family and other employees start working with them, it becomes more and more difficult to manage the business in this way. This Practice Note considers the advantages and disadvantages of formalising the family business, choosing a structure for a family business and family charters. Formalising the family business—advantages and disadvantages The main advantage of having an informal structure for a family business is flexibility. An informal structure gives family members the ability to make quick decisions and the freedom to run the business in any way they want. The biggest disadvantage is

This Practice Note sets out calculators available to assist family lawyers, including a child maintenance calculator, state pension calculator and legal aid calculator. Other calculators include, inter alia, retail price index (RPI) and consumer price index (CPI) calculators, a life expectancy calculator, an interest on judgment debt calculator and the Duxbury tables. Child maintenance calculator The GOV.UK Child maintenance calculator can be used to work out an amount of child maintenance for children. For further guidance, see Practice Notes: Child support—respective jurisdictions of the Child Maintenance Service and the court and Statutory child support scheme. CPI calculator The Lexis®Calculate CPI calculator is useful for determining the effect of inflation on, for example, periodical payments, where any indexation is based on CPI. For further guidance see Practice Note: At a Glance 2026–2027. In the 2023–2024 edition

Private Client analysis: Following a quantum-only trial, the court awarded the claimant £127,500 for 850 days of care provided to her late mother under an informal contract for payment of a reasonable price. The court treated comparable commercial care costs as the appropriate starting point, rather than applying the approach to gratuitous family care used in personal injury claims. A daily rate of £150 was reasonable in light of the claimant’s continuous supervision, personal and dementia care, management of medical conditions, board, lodging and travel. The decision illustrates the broad evaluative exercise required when fixing reasonable contractual remuneration for informal family care.

Client guides are precedent letters on a wide range of family law issues that may be sent directly by the family law practitioner to a client. Each guide includes drafting notes for practitioners and links to related content including Practice Notes, forms, cases, precedents and legislation. For procedural guides that provide step-by-step guidance on, inter alia, domestic abuse, preservation of assets, relationship breakdown, cohabitants, private children, financial provision, international cases and enforcement, see Practice

Restructuring and Insolvency analysis: The claimant sought a finding of unfair prejudice against his two brothers, and co-directors, with regards the management of the third defendant company. He invited the court to wind up the company on a just and equitable basis or, alternatively, that his share purchase order be made. While the court upheld some of the complaints of unfairly prejudicial conduct, it dismissed others. In so doing, the court provided helpful guidance in terms of the nature of conduct deemed to be unfairly prejudicial; the ingredients for a quasi-partnership; what steps are required for the effective dismissal of a director; the binding nature of reports prepared by single joint experts; and when, following presentation of an unfair prejudice petition, it may be appropriate to wind up the company concerned rather than award payment for the minority shareholder’s shareholding and interest. Written by Olivia Chaffin-Laird, a barrister at 33 Chancery Lane.