Kelly Gerrard is top knowledge development and Legal Director in the UK's leading Family department at Payne Hicks Beach.

Payne Hicks Beach listed in Tier 1 of eprivateclient’s Top Family Law Firms 2020 rankings

Payne Hicks Beach’s leading Family department is listed in Tier 1 of eprivateclient’s Top Family Law Firms 2020. Payne Hicks Beach’s inclusion in this list highlights ...

Anonymity in private law children proceedings

In the recently reported case of MacDougall v SW and others (sperm donor: parental responsibility or contact)[1] the judge took the unusual step of naming the father in the proceedings. ...

Declining rates of marriage

The Office for National Statistics ("ONS") have released their latest data on marriages in England and Wales. The most recent statistics relate to the 2019 calendar year [1]. During 2019, 213,122 ...

How will no fault divorce affect my financial settlement?

On 6 April 2022 the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 ("DDSA 2020") came into force. This new law swept away the old system under which to obtain a divorce it ...

The Court’s approach to disputes concerning the vaccination of children

On 4 April 2022, the NHS extended its offer of Covid-19 vaccinations to children aged 5-11. Like all vaccinations in the UK, these are not mandatory; the decision of whether or ...

The cost of family breakdown

A hot topic in politics today is the cost of living crisis. On 26 April 2022, Downing Street confirmed that the Prime Minister would chair a committee to tackle the issue ...

First Parental Order made in respect of an adult child

In X v Z (Parental Order Adult)[1] the Court had to deal with the novel application by the parents of a 24 year old man born under a surrogacy arrangement for ...

Counting down the days: No fault divorce in force from 6 April 2022

The new "no fault" divorce law will come into force on 6 April 2022. The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 ("DDSA 2020") which will take effect on that ...

What happens if I don’t want a divorce? Defended divorces and the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020

Often, a couple will reach the decision that a marriage has come to an end together. However, in many cases one party will want a divorce and the news ...

Horizon scanning - what does the year ahead hold for family law?

On the 24th December 2020 I wrote about what the year ahead held for family law in 2021. You can read that article here It is interesting to reflect on what ...

Are remote hearings here to stay?

The evolution of remote hearings At the beginning of 2020 most applications in the family court were made on paper and filed by hand or by post. Virtually all hearings ...

Don’t air your dirty laundry in public - social media and divorce

The vast majority of us now have a number of social media apps, including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter downloaded onto our smartphones. When going through a divorce it can ...

The Spoils of Divorce

When considering the division of assets on divorce, focus, quite rightly, usually starts on the big items such as houses, bank balances, investments and pensions. However, intense debate can ...

What is parental responsibility, who has it and can it be taken away?

What is parental responsibility? Parental responsibility ("PR") is defined by s3 (1) Children Act 1989 as 'all the rights, duties, powers responsibilities and authority which by law a parent ...

Summer Holidays 2021 - Don’t wait until the 11th hour!

We are now some 15 months into the global pandemic and, whilst restrictions at home are easing, international travel remains a thorny topic. What does this mean for separated parents ...

What support are unmarried parents entitled to? A long way to fall when the child reaches its majority and no ability to save for the future

Under English law there is currently no such concept as a common law marriage. This often comes as a surprise to people who have lived together for many years, ...

An end to the Marinos v Munro debate?

The UK finally left the EU at 11pm on 31st December 2020. Unfortunately, no bespoke family law arrangements were agreed with the EU governing the future inter country relations, leaving ...

The Domestic Abuse Bill

The Domestic Abuse Bill 2019-2021, sponsored by Priti Patel and Baroness Williams of Trafford, reached the Committee Stage in the House of Lords in early 2021. This vitally important bill ...

Horizon Scanning: What does the year ahead hold for Family Law?

Many of us will be glad to herald the end of 2020. But what does the year ahead in 2021 hold for Family Law? Work levels The Family Justice Board recently ...

Conduct yourself properly…or be penalised for litigation conduct

It is often said that London is the “divorce capital of the world”, the implication being that the English Courts are traditionally more favourable to the financially weaker ...

Is it safe to send my child back to school?

On the 18 March 2020 the Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson, announced that schools would close on 20 March to all pupils save for the children of key workers. Since that ...

Could Coronavirus unravel financial agreements and orders?

The novel Coronavirus In December 2019 China reported a cluster of cases of pneumonia in Wuhan Province which led to the identification of the novel coronavirus. On 23 January 2020 Wuhan was ...