Avsnitt
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In this specially recorded podcast, the Today's Family Lawyer podcast joins forces with its sister podcasts from the Today's Conveyancer and Today's Wills and Probate online news publications to discuss the topic of mental health and wellbeing ahead of Mental Health Awareness Week, from 13th May 2024.
Podcast host David Opie welcomes Rayden Solicitors' Legal Director Marc Etherington, alongside Michael Culver (Culver Law) and Laura Burkinshaw (Convey Law) to discuss the mental health and wellbeing of those working across family law, private client, and residential conveyancing. The three guests identify some shared, and unique, challenges they face in their own roles, and discuss their own experiences of dealing with their mental health and wellbeing.
What is clear from the discussion is that legal services is taking mental health and wellbeing much more seriously than it ever has; with firms taking a more proactive approach to support for staff.
The podcast moves on to explore a range of skills and tools we can employ in our own mental health and wellbeing journeys to cope with the stresses and strains of modern legal life; with some fantastic ideas shared to help people exercise their bodies and minds, cope and deal with their roles, and get into what is described as their "flow state"; the experience of being so absorbed by an engaging, enjoyable task that your attention is completely held by it.
The podcast is being published as part of Mental Health Awareness Week 2024.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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Hamza Hafesji, Group Product Manager at Advanced Legal, joins the latest Today’s Conveyancer podcast to discuss the importance of implementing a culture of performance management in a business.
For years the only time most employees receive any sort of constructive feedback has been in an annual appraisal. For Hamza, something has to fundamentally change and feedback must be much more of an ongoing process
He cites research from PWC, LexisNexis, Thomson Reuters and their own client surveys which point to the challenges that face law firms from an HR point of view. Indeed 3 in 5 law firms are concerned about talent and shortage and churn, and are consider it a barrier to their success.
He discusses organisations described as “Stay Firms” and “Go Firms” – firms who retain, and lose, talent. While acknowledging that remuneration plays a part in the success “Stay Firms,” the focus on their broader value proposition sees them not only retain staff, but makes them more efficient with higher billable hours and better staff mental health and wellbeing.
And lawyers themselves are more vocal about what they want from work. A staggering 44% of lawyers measure their stress levels at between 8-10 out of 10 in an Advanced Legal survey. That, and a lack of progression and professional development is often the cause of staff leaving.
“When we drill into this, we’re looking at a lack of mentorship and career guidance, a lack of promotion opportunities and the desire for greater on the job assistance. All of which can be described as performance management.”
This discussion covers a lot of ground around the value and importance of creating a culture of performance, normalising goal setting and providing a constant feedback loop between employees and managers. For Hamza, part of the success of implementing such a cultural change is in the adoption of technology to drive through the change and support managers to ask the right questions and enable those types of conversations.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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This latest podcast from Today's Family Lawyer explores the perennial question on the minds and lips of most businesses... what do clients really want?
A report from Law Firm Marketing Club does just that. Now in it's 4th year, "What Clients Want" is an extensive piece of research which asks consumers of legal services what they want from their law firm; from first introduction through to matter completion.
With 4 years' worth of data behind them, the report is now able to start tracking consumer expectations and trends over time. Once of the really interesting elements of the report is the breakdown by demographic of respondents and the changing expectations of consumers of legal services.
Client care and return business feature strongly in the report. 53% of respondents have used a law firm more than once but of those, a staggering 41% have not returned to the firm they'd used previously, but had moved to use a different firm. Read into that what you want but it's one of many statistics Clare shares in the course of the discussion.
The report delves in to the experience of using a law firm and in particular first impressions and onboarding. It is interesting to note that the way in which consumers select firms is changing, with a focus on sustainability and ESG higher on younger people's agenda.
There are plenty of lessons for firms as Clare shares details of responses to the extensive survey. The report is sponsored by Moneypenny and available via the Law Firm Marketing Club websiteThe Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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The Today's Family Lawyer podcast welcome Dan Warburton on to discuss the topic of leadership. Dan works with law firms leaders and partners to elevate their leadership skills to enable them empower staff to be more efficient and effective.
You must be clear on exactly what you want done; which must be measurable, not an abstract principle such as "keeping the client happy."It must have a timeframeYou must have joint agreement and offer the respondent the opportunity accept, decline or counteroffer in order to reach a jointly agreed action plan.
Dan describes his work as "the skill of profitable delegation;" to create leaders who can deliver high levels of performance across their team.
He cites the structure of many law firms in which lawyers are targeted on clients and the number of hours they bill... the system is set up in such a way that the more hours you work, in theory the more profit and remuneration can achieve. But when it comes to promotion what happens is you are expected to continue to build a client bank, and bill your hours, and manage a team of people. It is, says Dan, unachievable without simply more time into the equation, which has an impact on wellbeing and staff retention.
Few partners achieve what Dan describes as a "transition out of being a technician in the business to being a business owner. The structure and success of the organisation relies on them.
There is a way to resolve this, but we can only create successful teams when they willingly take responsibility for the success of the business. Dan shares his insight into how law firms can empower management teams and leaders to build trust and confidence in staff through regular one-to-one calls and coaching sessions.
There is a cycle that needs breaking in law firms, says Dan. If a partners we keep our head down and just keep trying to crank out work we build firms that rely on us. When our team want things from us and we tell them what they need, they just keep relying on us. We must delegate work away and create highly effective team members underneath us
Throughout the discussion Dan shares leadership insight and tools that leaders and manager can take away and implement today. One such example is the process of making requests, in which there are 3 key elementsUltimately, says Dan, when leadership is in, it's in.. when leadership is out, it's out. Listen in to this interesting discussion for law firm leaders and managers.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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Marc Etherington joins the latest Today's Family Lawyer Podcast to discuss the upcoming changes to the Family Procedure Rules which will further embed non-court dispute resolution (NCDR) in the family justice and courts services.
Marc, the Legal Director at Rayden Solicitors, and a member of Resolution's National Committee, explains how The Family Procedure (Amendment No 2) Rules 2023 (SI 2023/1324) will come into force in part on 8th April 2024 and partly on 29th April 2024. Describing the changes as a "gamechanger" Marc discusses the specific requirements of the amendments which it is hoped will encourage more disputes to be settled through NCDR going forward.
Host David Opie and Marc discuss the government's approach to NCDR and mediation specifically. Despite rejecting proposals to make mediation mandatory, it has introduced a number of initiatives to encourage greater use of mediation including £170m committed in the Spring 2024 budget, the extension of the mediation voucher scheme, and the Pathfinder scheme trials in Wales an Dorset.
There is still a greater understanding of NCDR options required, suggests Marc and firms should encourage staff to undertake training to better understand how they can introduce these options to their clients.
On using NCDR as a way of easing the pressure on the courts system Marc says
"if you're able to settle your case during the court process, at any stage before the judge makes a final decision, that probably highlighted that actually you could have resolved away from the court process in the first place. If you have a case that goes all the way to a final hearing and the judge makes a decision, no matter how hard you tried, they were never going to agree. "The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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The Today's Family Lawyer podcast welcomes well-known cohabitation reform specialist and campaigner Graeme Fraser on to discuss the next steps for legislative reform.
de facto relationships - couples are effectively considered married after a certain period of cohabitation Opt out position - you have to opt out of various protections given by cohabitation.
Graeme is a partner and head of the family team at William Sturges and Chair the Resolution Cohabitation committee. He decries the lack of legislation in this important, and growing area of family law. 1 in 3 first time buyers are cohabitees, and with accommodation, whether rental or purchase, increasingly unaffordable, the issue is only going to be become more prevalent.
The key issues as Graeme explains, are the need for greater property rights, financial provision for children and arrangements for children; the gulf between rights when you're married and when you're not is huge, and there is still a misnomer that you have acquired rights by living together, when you simply haven't.
The issue is also a growing equality issue, with the need for law that acknowledges and respects contributions by both sides of the family, including bringing up children, and looking after the home. There is precedent; White v White and Burns v Burns comes to mind, but 40 years on the position is even more unclear than it's ever been.
Learning from other countries, Graeme explains that concerns over controversy are unfounded; the introduction of cohabitation reform has been relatively smooth he says, and often follow a couple of established paths;Graeme is keen to reaffirm that nobody campaigning for cohabitation reform is devaluing marriage. But legislation which conflates cohabitation with marriage is not the right route to go down; rather, he says, we should be looking at ways to protect couples, in particular women and children, from the pitfalls of separation in cases where the couple are not married.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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Recorded shortly after the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Potanin v Potanina [2024] UKSC 3, partner at Hunters Law LLP Richard Kershaw join Today's Family Lawyer podcast host to discuss the implications of the decision in the family law sphere.
Richard outlines the facts of case; both parties are Russian citizens who were born, lived, married and divorced in Russia until the wife obtained a UK investor visa and bought a flat in London in 2014 after the divorce. The husband has accumulated a huge amount of wealth in the 1990's after the break of the Soviet Union as part of the wave of Oligarch's who benefited from privatisation of state assets. Many of these were held by various trusts and companies and in the process of the divorce they were not regarded as marital assets by the Russian court and the wide ultimately ended up with a settlement that provided her with a fraction of the overall assets.
By 2017 the wife was considered habitually resident in England and in 2018 she applied for permission to seek a financial remedy under Part III of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984.
Litigation in this matter has so far resulted in near 50 court appearances with the matter working its way through the British legal system since 2018 where it is acknowledged that there is greater favour to financially weaker parties. In a series of "will they, won't they" rulings, leave is granted, refused (High Court), granted (Court of Appeal); with this latest judgement allowing the husband to appeal to the Supreme Court in a decision which will have an impact on future Part III of the 1984 Act and London's reputation for "divorce tourism."The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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In this first episode of the second series of the Today's Family Lawyer podcast host David Opie discusses drug and alcohol testing with Paul Hunter, Technical Director of Forensic Testing Service, and Sarah Branson, a Barrister at Coram Chambers.
The discussion centres around the risks associated with over-reliance on testing data; which may seem a strange topic of discussion for a testing service but as Paul Hunter points out, in many case the evidence provided through testing services simply isn't being appropriately challenged because it isn't fully understood.
Both Sarah and Paul warn against considering testing evidence as an exact science. There are so many factors which can impact test results, we must be careful to use testing results as part of a case, not necessarily as the silver bullet.
In a recent case Sarah identified a range of environmental factors which ultimately impacted the result of a hair strand test. A father was contesting the result of a test which indicated recreational drug use and was at risk of losing his child to foster care. In the case the use of heat to treat hair, in this example hair straighteners, resulted in the appearance of indicators suggesting the use of crack cocaine. The case was successfully defended once it could be proven that heat treatment had caused the appearance of this marker.
Similarly demographics, hair types and colours all impact the adhesion of markers to air so that when it is tested results will vary. Paul points to factors including where the hair is taken from (front, rear or side of head), the length of the sample, the extent to which the strand is protected from the external environment in transit to testing and others as all part of the chain of evidence which can impact the final analysis.
Paul and Sarah are keen to provide greater education around this fast-changing area of science and highlight the risks of testing being considered an exact science, which can ultimately result in miscarriage of justice.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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There are lots of people we can bring into family matters that will add value and help the solicitor along the way; and potentially save the client time and money. To discuss the topic of collaborative family law Stacey St. Clair a partner in the family team at Debenhams Ottaway joins Today's Family Lawyer host David Opie.
Stacey discusses the question of how we identify who, and when, we can bring in support the legal professional in the course of the matter. "We must assess everyone on their story," says Stacey, "who do we need around them to get the best advice and expertise. Do we need a therapist, counsellor, pension adviser, private wealth adviser, divorce coach, etc"
Stacey says her experience is that clients are scared of the end, scared of what happens when the divorce is finalised but if you have that set up and network from the beginning they know they won't be left on their own and they have that support throughout the matter.
In some instances it feels like you're trying to "sell" this approach to clients, suggests Stacey. People don't expect the conversation, they go to a lawyer because they want or need to get divorced; but it's all about the service and explaining to them that this is best way to go.
And when cost is discussed the lawyer is able to explain that it's more cost effective because having the right tools to enable speedy discussions and reach a fair settlement, rather than go through the court process. Indeed, given the delays in the courts at the moment there is a greater desire, suggests Stacey, to move to settle rather than go through the court process.
This interesting discussion on collaborative family law provides a fascinating insight into the practitioners experiences of making it work on a day-to-say basis.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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The latest Today's Conveyancer podcast welcomes Nigel Shepherd on to discuss his role in, and view of, the implementation of The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act (2020), best know as "No Fault Divorce."
Nigel has ardently campaigned for over 20 years to reform divorce law; work which has seen him be the only person to have chaired Resolution twice; from the first Law Commission consultation in 1996, through to the act receiving Royal Assent in 2020, and implementation in April 2022, a momentous day.
Through the course of the discussion Nigel shares insight into how he and Resolution shaped the legislation, and whether it has fulfilled its promise and delivered a simpler, and fairer way to divorce.
Nigel also reflects on the societal changes that have impacted the journey. A vocal element of the opposition to reform in the 90's raised concerns that reform would make divorce easier, an issue that Nigel indicates was much more marginal now. "Divorce is more 'acceptable now'" suggests Nigel as society has changed in the intervening period.
This insight into one of the pivotal changes of the law in recent memory is a fascinating listen as Nigel shares his thoughts on the consequences, intended and unintended of The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act (2020).The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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In an extended episode of the Today's Family Lawyer Podcast host David Opie interviews June Venters KC, who has spent much of her legal career breaking down barriers promoting equal opportunities in the law.
In 1991 June launched Venters Solicitors, at a time when it was unusual for females to lead law firms. And in 2006 she was the first female solicitor to become Queen's Counsel.
June talks about how her early life shaped her passion for justice and her unusual route to training to be a lawyer. In a colourful career she recounts sharing a taxi with Charlie Kray whilst doing work experience with her mother who was working in a criminal law firm at the time.
The conversation moves on to her becoming the first females solicitor to become Queen's Counsel, again by a rather circuitous route. On her success, June is keen to point to role of hard work, diligence, and no little encouragement from those around her to "give things a go."
"Opportunities in life are often presented," says June, "and whilst not every opportunity materialises, if you don't give it a go, you don't know."
Still actively working matters in her firm, June discusses some of the most rewarding cases of her career, with typical modesty focusing on righting the wrongs of a case where father had been prevented access to his children, rather than the high profile court cases she is known for.
And as an advocate for mediation and alternative dispute resolution, June explores the importance of cohesion, and education across family law to make ADR a first point of call for matter.
An inspiring discussion for people at all levels of the law, listen in to this latest podcast from Today's Family Lawyer.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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The latest Today's Family Lawyer podcast welcomes Sally Jackson of Sally Jackson Coaching, and Julia Moreno, a family lawyer at Keystone Law and a trained divorce coach, on to the podcast to discuss the topic of divorce coaches.
The increasing use of subject matter experts across family law has led to a rise in the number of divorce coaches working with family lawyers; and the feedback is overwhelmingly positive.
Sally and Julia explore what is a divorce coach, how do they work and what do they do amongst many other questions on their role and impact on the matter.
One of the things that is evident from the discussion is the level of training and expertise divorce coaches bring to the table. Sally has experience in nursing and grief support, is a health coach and menopause specialist, and lecturer in clinical communication at the University of Cambridge. Julia has also completed divorce coaching qualification and brings her own experience as a family lawyer
Both talk about about how emotions play a fundamental role in how you navigate the divorce process and final outcome. Both consider a divorce coaches role to facilitate a better and kinder experience of divorce, and minimise the damage to divorcing parties. Sally adds that i'ts important to help clients make informed choices and if divorce is the final decision (and it doesn't have to be in some cases) people can come out of the other side stronger.
When asked about supporting family lawyers to help them identify individuals who would benefit from a divorce coach, both feel strongly that additional training and education is key and explore examples from their own experience of maters where they have successfully intervened. Julia and Sally also share some thoughts on how and when they work best to support both clients and lawyers achieve the most suitable outcome.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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The Today's Family Lawyer podcast welcomes Natasha Grande, Head of Family at Wilsons LLP, to discuss the impact of court delays on the day-to-day running of a busy family law practice with host David Opie.
Natasha explains that for most clients the two most important questions are how long is my matter going to take and how much is it going to cost? Historically, says Natasha, lawyers could be be quite positive on the timescales but with the latest statistics on private law children cases indicating that the process is taking 47 weeks , managing client expectations is much more difficult.
When it comes to why we still have delays it is difficult to ignore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic which "altered successful timelines in family law cases which had been established in 2016."
Beyond that Natasha points to the increasing complexity of family law cases; exacerbated by delays, which often means that circumstances have changed and or new information comes to light which impacts the factual matrix. And of course with the latest Legal Aid contracts just released, family law continues to be chronically under-funded which has an impact on both public and private law matters.
It's not all doom and gloom and with the rise of alternative dispute resolution options, mediation, arbitration, "one couple, one lawyer," private FDR and more, practitioners are keeping more cases out of the courts. Keeping an open mind and deciding on the best and most appropriate course for clients is part of the family lawyer's responsibility.
Alongside the challenges of court delays, the role of family lawyers in reducing them where possible , the discussion also explore the impact of external factors like the increase of Litigants in Person; research in 2023 has shown that the percentage of cases which reached a final order where neither party had legal representation has increased from 14% in 2013, to around 40% now.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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Following a short break over the Summer, the Today's Family Lawyer podcast returns with host David Opie speaking with Simon McCrum.
There isn't much Simon McCrum doesn't know about running a law firm having been there, done it, and got the t-Shirt. In this discussion Simon shares a little about his background and how he came to run the fastest growing law firms in the country before its acquisition.
He now shares his experience with other law firms as a management consultant and author of 2 books, "The Perfect Legal Business" and "The Perfect Lawyer," and through the course of the discussion Simon provides some fascinating insight into what he considers he did well, and what lessons he learnt along the way; all of which he includes in his books.
He describes how he encourages firms to find and use differentiators across their business and create a culture of buy in across the firm. "The ultimate differentiator is service, but the ultimate challenge is living that" says Simon. He encourages firms to take a long hard look at their business and ask themselves if they are truly offering a "Bentley service, for a Bentley price."
He moves on to discuss the content of "The Perfect Lawyer" in which he suggests the perfect lawyer is someone who has both pride in their own work and skills, and takes pride in, and understand their responsibilities to, the business; describing how "perfect lawyers" are nurtured by firms.
This insightful discussion with one of the most passionate and experienced professionals we've had on the podcast is a "must listen" for law firm leaders and aspiring leaders.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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If we thought branding was about logos and then we’re absolutely wrong... it's about reputation, meaning, culture, service and so much more according to Matt Davies who joins host David Opie on the latest Today's Family Lawyer podcast.
a story or narrative that your customers find interesting and excitingsomething that your people can buy into and rally around
Matt lives and breathes branding and his enthusiasm for the subject comes across through this discussion which provides some useful pointers on what brand is, why it is important and where do we start?
Pulling no punches Matt challenges organisations and law firms to think about why they exist beyond making money.
"Nobody is interested in you wanting to make money," says Matt. "You may personally be in business to make money but your brand and business and what it's trying to do in the world needs to have a narrative and a story to position itself in such a way that is effective in its market place."
Your brand should be"And here’s the kicker" adds Matt, "it has to be true and it has to be authentic, because in today’s world you’ll get found out."
In his work Matt asks 4 key questions of organisations.
What do you exist beyond making moneyWho do we serveHow should we show up for themWhat are we offering themThroughout this insightful discussion Matt provides plenty of useful pointers ad tips organisations and law firms can take away and implement in their own business.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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The True Worth Expert Vanessa Ugatti joins host David Opie on the latest Today's Family Lawyer Podcast.
Vanessa works with professional services individual and organisations to help them understand their true value, and explain that better to clients to help them get paid their true worth, unapologetically.
In her work Vanessa sees individuals and organisations constantly undercharging, underestimating, discounting, over servicing; she explains how a lack of confidence in conveying value leads to firms making less money and working too hard.
She explains how there is a tendency to be fearful about charging for our work. While Vanessa doesn't give away all her secrets, during the podcast she provides some insight into her 9 Part True Worth Methodology; explaining how one of the key elements is helping people become more consciously aware of the value they're providing.
"We take for granted that we are experts," Vanessa explains. "It's easy because we've got 10-20 years experience." She suggests we need to "take charge" when it comes to pricing. "Modern lawyers have to be commercially aware which has a positive knock on effect on profitability and staff wellbeing because they're being paid fairly for the worth they do," she adds.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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The Today's Family Lawyer podcast welcomes Nicola Rushton, Senior Associate at Forbes Solicitors in Lancashire, to discuss costs in financial remedy proceedings with host David Opie.
For Nicola, current costs rules don't provide any deterrent for litigants, and particularly litigants in person, to run cases that don't have merit or are disproportionate to the assets.
In an interesting discussion Nicola shares her thoughts on current case law, citing RM V TM [2020] EWFC 41 in which Justice Peel QC provides a damning assessment of the litigation costs saying
"There may be worse examples of disproportionate and ill-judged litigation, but none spring to mind. It's hard to express what a calamitous waste of resources this has been."
The case resulted in legal costs spiralling to 94% of liquid assets as each side continued to robustly reject any negotiation. In the end each party walked away with just c. £5,000.
Nicola also cites a more recent case presided over by Mr Justice Mostyn OG v AG [2020] EWFC 52 which provides another reminder of the dim view the courts will take on delay and dishonesty, using costs as a method to penalise those who fall foul.
"Seeking costs puts the other side on notice," says Nicola acknowledging that you very well not be awarded them, but they are part of the practitioner's armoury when it comes to financial remedy proceedings.
Nicola shares her thoughts on the importance of seeking orders for costs, and what practitioners need to consider throughout the proceedings to ensure you are protecting your clients from the risk of costs orders. being imposed on them.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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The Today's Family Lawyer podcast welcomes Tara Dunne (OurFamilyWizard) and Pelumi Adeola (BHP Law) to discuss how technology is changing the narrative around adversarial divorce proceedings.
Promoting positive communication between those separating, and their representation, is critical. Alongside the work being done through alternative dispute resolution and by organisations like Resolution, what else can we do promote a more positive experience.
And where children are involved, how can we ensure they aren't drawn into the war of words which can cause so much harm. How can we shield them both during divorce proceedings and beyond.
Tara and Pelumi discuss the move toward using online communication platforms to help support all those involved in the separation process to communicate more effectively and constructively.
They discuss the bygone days of the handover book, with it's many flaws, errors, manipulation and deliberate deception. Where in many cases the child is exposed to harmful messaging and vitriol. To be replaced by a more modern, trustworthy, and collaborative technology.
As Pelumi says, the important thing for parents to remember is that they are divorcing each other, not their children, and we must place their wellbeing at the centre of considerations.
This interesting discussion explores how adopting technology has the potential to help family lawyers and their clients achieve more constructive outcomes.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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Since 1993 Derek Parsons, a solicitor at RWK Goodman, has specialised in Child Abduction work and joins this latest Todays' Family Lawyer podcast to discuss his experience.
Derek explores the reasons why children can become removed from their homes and the work he does in ensuring they are protected. Broadly speaking much of Derek's work revolves around the Hague Convention, which protects children from removal from their "habitual home." However, as Derek explains, there is more nuance to the issue and explains how culture and circumstance can impact his work.
What happens if the country you're dealing with isn't a member of the Hague Convention? How are issues with funding dealt with? How long do you need have lived somewhere before it becomes the "habitual residence?" How do we ensure children remain at the centre of the discussion, rather than become a pawn in the dispute between parents? At what age does the child have a more active say in their futures?
In a fascinating discussion Derek explores the origins and consequences of child abduction cases, the changing nature of the work and the impact of geo-political issues like Brexit and conflict, including the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
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The latest episode of the Today's Family Lawyer podcast welcomes James Brown, one half of Manchester headquartered Hall Brown Family Law.
In this edition James discusses the launch of Hall Brown, and how they have developed the strategy and business to become “simply the best in the North West” as a Legal 500 Tier One firm; a status they have achieved three years running, despite only launching in 2016.
James talks through the journey he and co-Founder Sam Hall embarked on when they left their respective roles to set up Hall Brown. In particular he discusses the culture they set out to create, the support they provide their staff and their unique approach to recruitment.
He also explores what he describes as the "simplicity" of a legal business. Law firms essentially sell time and expertise. He describes the team as the business development resource, the manufacturing line, the marketing resource and the accounts team and outlines some of the work they do as an organisation to invest in and reward their staff.
Interestingly James shares the Hall Brown approach to the working from home/working from the office expectations for staff, which includes his thoughts on the often-mentioned issue of "learning by osmosis."
The wide-ranging, frank and enjoyable discussion provides some insight into the lessons Sam and James have learned along the way and their passion for family law.The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector. - Visa fler
