Each of these will usually agree a fixed fee in advance for a defined task: a one-hour consultation, a review of a document you have built here, a certificate of independent legal advice for an agreement, or finalising a consent order. Ask for the fee before you instruct and say that your papers are already prepared; it shortens the job.
Barristers you can instruct directly
Members of the public can instruct a barrister directly without a solicitor, with fixed fees agreed in advance. The family finance team, headed by Edward Boydell KC, has more than forty barristers across every level of case, many of them mediators and arbitrators; its clerks will match the case to a suitable barrister. Well suited to advice on a document, a certificate of independent legal advice, or representation at a single hearing. The founder practises from these chambers and will not accept any instructions that come through this website, because of the conflict of interest; ask the clerks for another member of the team.
A long-established set with offices in Manchester and Preston whose family team accepts direct access instructions. Ask for Matthew Gibbons, Senior Clerk to Chambers since 2002, who will match your case to a suitable family barrister and agree the fee in advance.
Solicitors
The Family Law Company. Joint managing director; solicitor, family mediator, collaborative lawyer and arbitrator, with experience of complex divorce and financial cases and of disputes about children.
Downs Solicitors. Partner in the family team, dealing with divorce, financial settlements, children and nuptial agreements.
Sonia is a family law specialist solicitor and an accredited family mediator. She advises on the finances of separation and divorce, child arrangements, domestic abuse, surrogacy and pre- and post-nuptial agreements. She offers financial, children, hybrid and child-inclusive mediation and MIAMs. She practises as a senior consultant solicitor with Southgate Solicitors and is the founder of 2getherwise, an independent family law and mediation consultancy.
Clarkson Wright & Jakes is a well-known family law practice in Kent. It is experienced in handling cases involving inherited wealth, businesses, pensions and property, the assets a nuptial or cohabitation agreement most often needs to deal with.
Gardner Leader LLP. Stephanie is a senior family law expert with decades of experience, advising on divorce and separation, financial remedies, arrangements for children and pre- and post-nuptial agreements. She has particular experience of complex financial matters involving property, pensions, businesses and other assets. Stephanie's approach is practical, empathetic and focused on achieving constructive solutions. A member of Resolution, she encourages sensible discussion, negotiation and non-court dispute resolution wherever appropriate, while also guiding clients through court proceedings when necessary.
Keystone Law. Partner and family solicitor with over 15 years' experience of divorce finances, children disputes, pre- and post-nuptial agreements and cohabitation disputes.
Mediators and how to find an adviser near you
A mediator can help the two of you agree the terms before anything is drafted, which is often the quickest route to an agreement you both feel is fair. These directories are free to use and independent of AgreeReady.
The register of accredited family mediators. Mediators work with couples who are still together as well as couples who are separating: a few sessions can settle what goes into a pre-nuptial, post-nuptial or cohabitation agreement, with each of you then taking the agreed terms to your own adviser. Search by postcode and look for a mediator who lists finances or nuptial agreements among their specialisms.
Resolution's members are family lawyers, mediators and other professionals who sign up to a code of practice that puts a constructive, non-confrontational approach first. Its directory lets you search for a member near you who advises on nuptial and cohabitation agreements, which is the kind of adviser you want for a certificate of independent legal advice.
The Law Society's free search covers every solicitor in England and Wales. Filter by "Family" and your town for a solicitor who can give one of you independent advice on the agreement; the other of you must use a different firm.
The Bar Council's own search for barristers who are qualified to take instructions directly from the public, without a solicitor. Search for family finance barristers near you, read their profiles and send an enquiry; fees are agreed in advance. Each of you can instruct a different barrister for the certificate of independent legal advice.
What to ask for
- Before signing a pre-nuptial or post-nuptial agreement: an hour's independent advice for each of you, from different lawyers, and the certificate pages at the end of the agreement completed. This is the single thing that most strengthens an agreement if it is ever tested.
- Before signing a cohabitation agreement: the same, plus a conveyancing solicitor to prepare a declaration of trust for the home if you own it together.
- If one of you lives or has assets abroad: advice on whether the agreement will be recognised there and whether a mirror agreement is needed.
- If the figures are large or complicated: a business, a trust or a substantial inheritance, advice on how to describe them in the agreement and whether a valuation is needed.