Author Archives: Social Land

While forced marriage has been illegal in the UK since 2014 and ‘love marriages’ are held up as the norm, arranged marriages often fall into a grey area between the two. Arranged marriages can sometimes be viewed as uncomfortable in contemporary Britain, largely due to the belief that these are the same as ‘forced marriage’ which they are most certainly not. For many they are a quaint eastern custom and now modern arranged marriagesContinue reading “Divorcing after an arranged marriage”

These new changes come into effect on 6 April 2023, but what could it mean for you? The aim of this new measure is to make the Capital Gains Tax rules that apply to separating or divorcing spouses/civil partners fairer by allowing more time to transfer assets between themselves without being subjected to Capital GainsContinue reading “HMRC introduce new GCT fairer process for separating or divorcing spouses for distributing assets between themselves.”

How to turn a negative review into a positive experience. As a family law solicitor and acting for one party, it’s inevitable that at some point the ‘other’ party we are not representing isn’t going to be happy – especially when we’re doing our job properly and getting the results our client needs, to theContinue reading “Bouncing Back From A Bad Review”

What you need to know about spousal maintenance and why a ‘meal ticket for life’ is something we can no longer expect What is spousal maintenance? The sum fixed for the spousal maintenance payments can be varied at a later date if circumstances have changed and this can only be done through a court order.Continue reading “Securing fair spousal maintenance support after divorce in the UK“

Why trying to hide your assets is never a good idea In 2021, Tatiana Akhmedova defeated her son and her ex-husband in The England and Wales Family Court (EWFC) in an asset recovery claim. The court ruled that her eldest son had been involved in helping her former husband, Farkhad Akhmedov, hide his assets toContinue reading “The complexities of splitting foreign asset finances in a divorce”

If you’ve recently divorced or dissolved your civil partnership, updating your Will should be your top priority – unless of course, you want your ex to inherit? Many people simply assume that by getting divorced any Will made whilst still married automatically becomes invalid. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case and not making a new WillContinue reading “Should I make a Will if I get divorced and what happens if I don’t?”

Whilst a biological mother is automatically granted parental responsibility, that is not the case for the father or civil parent. In this blog we explain all you need to know about parental responsibility and what you need to do to get it.  Mum + Dad/civil parent = child = equal parental responsibility, yes? No. Unfortunately,Continue reading “How parental responsibility is NOT an automatic right for the father/civil parent”

For the majority of us sharing personal information on social media is now part of everyday life, but there are boundaries that should never be crossed, especially in a court of law. In a recent case M A-G v Hartley (contempt) [2021] EWHC 2473 (FAM), the repercussions of his online actions were considerable for MrContinue reading “Father jailed and fined for contempt of court, following publication of Children Act proceedings on social media”

As we approach summer, we explore this common scenario in a little more detail and hope to offer some clarity. Going on holiday should be a fun and exciting time – not just for children but for the grown ups too! After all, we work hard and need a break to recharge our batteries, especiallyContinue reading “Can I take my child on holiday and can the ‘absent’ father legally do the same?”

Hope for many caught in a painful and often secretive form of domestic abuse that can be hard to evidence. Coercive control is a term that appears all too frequently in children act cases and as a family lawyer, I am particularly happy to welcome the new judgment of Justice Hayden in the case ofContinue reading “New ruling on coercive control in children act cases”