“Knowledge”, as one popular saying goes, “is power”. The implication is that an understanding of how something functions equips us with confidence. It’s a maxim brought to mind by a significant project which is currently underway at three family courts in England and Wales. As the name given to the initiative – the Transparency Implementation […]
Read moreFor many individuals in many cultures and across many centuries, marriage has been the principal – and, in some cases, the only – way of forging relationships. If we turn the clock back exactly a decade, in fact, to discussions about which led to the introduction of same-sex marriage, the then Culture Secretary, Maria Miller, […]
Read moreJust over 50 years ago, two US psychiatrists undertook a research project to determine the degree to which a variety of relatively common life events might stress those who experienced them. The work of Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe considered the medical records of more than 5,000 individuals. It was eventually published in 1967 and […]
Read moreLet’s be frank: the end of a marriage is not an altogether pleasant process. In my experience, most spouses try to be amicable while dealing with the paperwork, dividing up their joint assets and determining the best arrangements for their children. However, the underlying fact is that they wouldn’t have to do all those things […]
Read moreRegular readers of this ‘blog will have noticed that one of its regular themes has been the way in which family life in England and Wales has changed in recent years. In addition to articles on how opposite sex and same sex couples form and frame their relationships, another topic has generated comment having featured […]
Read moreIt is sometimes bewildering to think of the speed at which home life in the UK has changed. Not so long ago, for instance, there was an expectation that women would marry young, have children and remain housewives. Yet that notion continues to be challenged. Both women and men now marry 10 years later on […]
Read moreSeven years ago, I was sat in a small office in the centre of Manchester, involved in preparations for the launch of a new business. It sometimes seems hard to believe what has happened in the time since. From that single room and three employees, Hall Brown has grown quickly and now boasts four offices […]
Read moreFor many people, today will be the first full day of work back in their offices since the start of 2023. In recent years, though, it has become known as ‘Divorce Day’: the time when husbands and wives who have reached the limit of their patience with their spouses contact family lawyers like myself and […]
Read moreAs I write, households across the UK are adjusting to life after the Christmas holidays. Yet even before the decorations have been put away, some families will be facing up to far more momentous change than the shift on the calendar from one year to another. At various points throughout the year, family lawyers like […]
Read moreIt might seem that the last few winters have brought successively deeper chills. In this country, the toll exacted by the Covid pandemic on homes and businesses, for instance, has been compounded by the news that the UK has entered the deepest economic downturn since 2008 (https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/nov/17/obr-confirms-uk-enters-year-long-recession-with-half-a-million-job-losses-likely). If the headline announcement by the Office for […]
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