News/Blogs  

  THE GREAT LEAP FORWARDS: CHANGE AND TRADITION IN RELATIONSHIPS  

Today is February the 29th. As a quirk of the calendar, it has become the subject of a number of traditions, one being that it provides a day on which women can propose to men, rather than the other way around. It is said to have originate in fifth-century Ireland, when St Brigid struck a […]

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  STARTING FROM SCRATCH: LOTTERY CASH AND CONFLICT  

“Money”, it has been said, “can’t buy you happiness”. The validity of that statement, I believe, depends on individual circumstances rather than being a universal truth. I also don’t think that it’s uppermost in the mind of the millions of people who buy lottery tickets and scratchcards each week. One couple – or, should I […]

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  APPOINTMENTS MEAN PRIZES AS HALL BROWN CLAIMS SHEFFIELD AWARD  

Strength in depth and an increase in casework has helped Hall Brown Family Law’s Sheffield team win a prestigious regional legal award. The office held off challenges from rival practices across a number of different specialisms to be named as Niche Firm of the Year in the Sheffield and District Law Society annual awards. The […]

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  CHANGE AND CHILL: DOES COOLING OFF PERIOD DETER OR JUST DELAY DIVORCE?  

No matter how eagerly anticipated a change in the law may be, it can take some time after it comes into force to discern whether it has had the desired effect – or any effect at all. That is why the latest divorce figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) could be said […]

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  CHILDREN, CONFLICT AND CONSISTENCY: DOMESTIC ABUSE AND THE FAMILY COURT  

Our concepts of what constitutes a positive family environment evolve over time both as a result of what we experience as individuals and the input of others. Sometimes, trying to reconcile differing viewpoints, particularly in relation to some of the more delicate and difficult aspects of family law can be a great challenge. One such […]

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  EYES WIDE OPEN: PETER ANDRE, FOREVER LOVE AND PRENUPS  

Around this time of year, love is, to quote the title of one hit song, “all around”. In fact, whether you’re in a relationship or not, the volume of Valentine’s and spring-themed marketing is so all-pervasive that it can be hard not to ruminate on romance. I don’t wish to be the person who blunts […]

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  A Cautionary Winter’s Tale: Separated Parents and ‘Snowflakes’  

All it takes is placing one foot outside the front door in the morning to show that we are still in the grip of winter. Low light, lower temperatures and even the odd flurry of snow are very much the order of the day at this time of year. Usually, of course, it’s the impact […]

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  The Other Half: Families And Football’s Transfer Window  

Football, as many a player, manager and pundit has reminded us, is a game of two halves. Whilst that usually applies to the duration of games, it can be interpreted in another sense. When they step outside the white lines of some of the most hallowed stadia in the sport, thousands of players within the […]

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  Children, ‘Challenge’ And The Family Courts  

One of the fundamental principles of the legal system in England and Wales is that there should be in fair access to justice. Just over a year ago, the body which represents barristers, the Bar Council, suggested that right was being denied to many. In a November 2022 report which identified a number of causes […]

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  Oligarchs, Divorce Tourism And Dystophia  

OLIGARCHS, DIVORCE TOURISM AND DYSTOPIA For some years now, London has been regarded as the divorce capital of the world. That is a label which has been earned due to a succession of high value cases which have notably been regarded as more generous to financially weaker spouses than might have been the case in […]

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