If you need legal assistance, it is always a good idea to retain the services of solicitors that have a long-standing reputation in the community as well as legal arena. Choose legal service specialists that focus on such areas as:
- Family law
- Education law
- Child care law
- Employment law
- Housing and property law
- Conveyancing
- Company law
- Wills, Probate and Trust
- Commercial Law
Making a Selection for a Solicitor
By choosing a legal firm that offers legal services for both businesses and individuals, you can obtain any kind of legal assistance any time you need it. Your selection of a firm is important, not only to your business reputation but for your family’s protection as well.
Family Law Categories
In fact, one of the key areas of the law involves family law, which can also involve a number of categories and classifications. Areas that are covered under this legal specialty include financial division, children’s cases, financial claims between unmarried people, pre-nuptial contracts, civil partnerships, collaborative law and domestic abuse.
Make Sure All Your Legal Needs Are Met
As you can see, when you choose to obtain advice from a solicitor, you can find yourself involved legally in one of a number of areas. Again, it is imperative to make sure all your legal needs are met, whether you have a family dispute or need to obtain information about the codes and regulations for a building in your area.
Reaching an Agreement
In the area of family law, make sure your solicitor uses a different approach to resolving familial conflicts as legal mandates should avoid adversarial confrontations. Not only does an aggressive approach prolong disagreements, it makes it difficult for the legal representative and his client to work toward an agreement – one that is made through negotiation and conciliation.
Reducing the Potential for Conflict
Therefore, if you are involved in family law issues, the goal is to minimise any conflict and to avoid inflaming the proceedings. You solicitor should encourage family communication that addresses issues objectively and avoids any type of confrontation. After all, the goal in family law is to work out a plan of mediation where every member in the conflict is considered, especially the children.
Cases Requiring Immediate Action
Whilst alternatives to litigation (such as mediation) are always helpful, some family law cases also require immediate action in the court. In these cases, you need to retain he services of London solicitors who also understand the importance of reacting immediately – particularly if a case calls for protecting and defending the rights of the client. The barrister should work toward representing the views of the client while providing realistic recommendations as well.
Sensitive Proceedings
Cases in family law proceedings can be quite sensitive. That is why it is imperative that communication with the client is directed toward understanding both the financial and emotional needs of all the parties involved.
Specialist Panels
Solicitors who practice family law should be committed to providing the best level of service possible. This dedication is supported by memberships on major specialist panels, such as the Family Panel, Advanced Family Panel and the Law Society Children Panel. Solicitors in the family law field should also be educated in collaborative law and mediation.
Obtaining an Amicable Divorce
UK solicitors who practice collaborative law have found a rather unique method of resolving disputes. The method was introduced by lawyers in the U.S. to UK solicitors in 2003. In fact, collaborative law has grown in popularity to the point that is has been found as the primary choice of UK couples who want to experience an amicable divorce.
Dispute Resolution
In essence, collaborative law is using mediation as a form of dispute resolution. Therefore, a divorce case, for example, is conducted, following a series of meetings. During the process, no adversarial messages or court proceedings are part of the activities. Parties, who work out their differences and divorce using this method, sign up in order to avoid going to court. If this method is found not to work, or does not produce an agreement, then the couple will fire their lawyer and engage another legal representative.
Collaborative Law Negotiations
If an agreement is made through collaborative law negotiations, then the contract is sealed after being formalised by the court. Using this kind of legal alternative makes family law subjects, such as divorce, less controversial and creates a better understanding among all the parties involved. If your lawyer does not practice collaborative law and you have had some disputes in your family, then you may want to find a solicitor who makes use of the legal process.
Why Family Law Negotiations Should Never be Adversarial
Family law can extend to signing prenuptial agreements and to resolving financial claims between couples who are no longer married. Most all of the family law cases involve children. In fact, the services offered by family barristers would thin out a great deal if the solicitors did not handle divorce cases or negotiate visitation and care rights for the children involved in a divorce.
Reducing the Stress of Divorce
Therefore, if you are going through a divorce, you need to consult with a collaborative law specialist to lessen the stress that can be associated with the process. A solicitor that offers services in a number of areas of family law anticipates his client’s needs so he can better serve him. Does you solicitor balance out his offerings in this manner as well? Financial and legal differences can be minimised when lawyers offer members of families several services under this category.
A Challenging Process
When you work with a lawyer who is well-versed in divorce proceedings and family law, he can inform you whether or not you have grounds to file for divorce. The whole process can prove to be especially challenging if you have lost your marriage certificate or your spouse cannot be found. Lawyers who practice family law must consider the feelings and needs of the children involved in a divorce as well. The whole goal is to keep disputes from surfacing while using care in negotiating an agreement or resolving a claim.
