K J Smith Solicitors
Published: 15 September 2015
Charities such as the Bar Pro Bono Unit are facing mounting pressure from people who need legal assistance, with the number of applications almost doubling over the past three years, due to widespread legal aid cuts in England and Wales.
Published: 8 September 2015
A new study, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, is due to commence in October 2015 and will explore the concept of fault in the divorce system and whether a 'no fault' divorce system could work in England and Wales.
Published: 2 September 2015
A Judge from the Family Division of the High Court in London has dismissed an estranged ex-wife's claim for a share of her ex-husbands classic car collection, worth over £20 million.
Published: 25 August 2015
The courts have reported a significant rise in the number of grandparents applying for Special Guardianship Orders to assume parental responsibility for their grandchildren, which has seen an increase of almost 50% in the last four years.
Published: 19 August 2015
The Law Society are calling for better enforcement of family financial orders but have opposed plans by the Law Commission to introduce punishments for debtors, such as curfews, driving disqualifications, bans on leaving the country and even imprisonment.
Published: 11 August 2015
A nationwide provider of family mediation services in England and Wales have revealed that their mediation helpline has seen the number of calls double in the past year, highlighting that more divorcing couples are opting for family mediation to settle their differences, rather than going to court.
Published: 5 August 2015
A women who was married to her partner for 20 years before discovering he was involved with numerous different same-sex partners has been told that she can't divorce on the grounds of adultery, as UK law states that adultery only applies when it involves intercourse with a member of the opposite sex.
Published: 28 July 2015
Family law firms across the country are reporting an upward trend of wives wanting their divorce cases settled in London in the hope of receiving a larger payout, creating a North-South divide in how divorce cases are settled by the courts.
Published: 20 July 2015
Millionaire Michael Harris, who refers to himself as ‘Delboy’, has lost abattle against his ex-wife Linda Capehorn relating to property worth £900,000.
Published: 17 July 2015
A multi-millionaire oil tycoon may be facing prison for up to 4 weeks due to unpaid maintenance of more than £360,000, as well as the failure to pay the awarded sum from the divorce settlement to his ex-wife.
Published: 7 July 2015
Senior Judge Sir Nicholas Mostyn has strongly criticised the government cuts to legal aid in a speech in Australia about access to justice in family proceedings.
Published: 1 July 2015
A new report from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has revealed a record number of prosecutions for offences involving violence against women and girls in England and Wales over the last 12 months.
Published: 23 June 2015
Leading domestic violence charity Refuge say that children are the "forgotten victims of domestic violence" and that many of them witness violence in the home, with as many as 1 in 3 women being injured at the hands of their partners by the time they seek professional help.
Published: 16 June 2015
New research, conducted by the Nuffield Foundation, has highlighted that dads are more likely to have regular contact with a son than a daughter following a split from their partners.
Published: 9 June 2015
The number of divorcees appealing to the Supreme Court and seeking new financial settlements due to their ex-partners providing misleading information is on the rise.
Published: 2 June 2015
The Government are proposing plans to amend pension regulations that came into effect earlier in the year, as they fear that divorcees are exploiting loopholes in the new system which could leave their ex-partners with nothing.
Published: 28 May 2015
The University of Bristol has carried out a study into the link between men being victims of or committing domestic abuse with mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.
Published: 22 May 2015
A former beauty queen has been urged to reach an agreement in a recent divorce settlement after running up legal bills of more than £1,000,000. Mrs Fields – formerly known as Ekaterina Parfenova, has reportedly asked for a lump sum of £2.6 million and £500,000 per year after that.
Published: 11 May 2015
Divorcees who have previously set up pension earmarking orders have been urged to protect their pension benefits, due to unintended consequences that have been brought about by pension reforms.
Published: 8 May 2015
James Roberts, barrister of 1 King’s Bench Walk, and Catherine Silwal , Senior Solicitor with KJ Smith Solicitors, analyse the law relating to variation of foreign maintenance orders and the effect of the EU Maintenance Regulation (Council Regulation (EC) No 4/2009).