4PB Family Finance

𝗔𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗮 𝗠𝗲𝗵𝘁𝗮 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗟𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 Anita Mehta was recently invited to speak at the sold-out @ClassLegalUK Financial Remedies Conference 2025. She delivered a presentation on one of the biggest questions in #FinancialRemedy law this year: ‘Conduct; Does it need a reset?’. The conference was chaired by Mr Justice Peel, with Sir Nicholas Mostyn delivering the keynote speech. #FamilyLaw #FinancialRemedies #MatrimonialFinance

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟰𝗣𝗕 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗨𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲 – 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 edition is now available. Click the link below and download your copy: 4pb.com/news/the-4pb-f… 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 1. NCDR, costs and the sanctity of PFDR confidentiality: DF v YB (No 2 Costs) EWFC 76 (B) and BC v BC [2025] EWFC 236 2. Undue pressure and nuptial agreements: PN v SA [2025] EWFC 141 3. Child maintenance and equal shared care: OS v DT [2025] EWFC 156 (B) 4. A fresh interpretation of the power to strike out: M v B [2025] EWFC 182 5. Material Non-Disclosure and the reopening of proceedings: Copinger-Symes v Copinger-Symes & Anor [2024] EWFC 415 6. Barrell Jurisdiction: X and Y [2025] EWHC 727 (Fam) 7. Case Summary: Galbraith-Marten v De Renée (Extension of Extended Civil Restraint Order) [2025] EWFC 96 8. Case Summaries: An ear to the ground Editors & Contributors: @KieranBall1, @BurleySusannah, @barristerjulia, @Alex__Halliday, Ciara Coleman, Josephine Moreton and Isabella Hibbert-Robinson #FamilyLaw #FinancialRemedies #NCDR #PFDR #CaseSummary

The London Financial Remedies Court is set to face 'drastic' cuts to its judicial resources because of a reduction in family court sitting days for the upcoming financial year. But what will be the impact? Catherine Wood KC and Henry Clayton speak to eprivateclient (@PAMInsight) about the consequences of these cuts for divorcing couples looking for a resolution to their disputes, and what other options may be on the table. Click the link below to read their comments: paminsight.com/epc/article/dr… #FamilyLaw #FinancialRemedies #NCDR

𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐞: 𝐘𝐁 𝐯 𝐙𝐁 (𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐚𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐥) [𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒] 𝐄𝐖𝐅𝐂 𝟒𝟓𝟖 (𝐁) Pippa Sanger (@PipSanger) successfully represented the appellant wife in a spousal maintenance appeal before HHJ Farquhar. At first instance, District Judge Melville Walker ordered a capital split of 43.6% to YB, 56.3% to ZB, and spousal maintenance of £250 pcm for 12 months. On appeal, HHJ Farquhar upheld the capital division but found the spousal maintenance order to be wrong. He accepted the issue of double counting “would have to be borne in mind, but it cannot be of central importance when considering the overall figures”. Exercising his discretion afresh, he ordered spousal maintenance of £900 pcm until the younger child turns 12, then £500 pcm until 18, with a s.28(1A) bar. Read the judgment here: caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewfc/b/2024/458. #FamilyLaw #FinancialRemedies

𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐖𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡-𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬 qxmagazine.com/2025/07/dividi… Rosanne Godfrey-Lockwood (@GodfreyLockwood) features in @QXMagazine, discussing how the courts approach divorces involving significant financial asymmetry between spouses, as well as considerations around non-liquid wealth, age disparity, short marriages of two years or less, and equality in cases involving same-sex couples. #FamilyLaw #Divorce #FinancialRemedies

We are delighted that Charles Hale KC (@twitbarrister) has been invited to serve as a judge for the @Citywealth Magic Circle Awards 2026. He joins a distinguished panel from across the legal and financial sectors, as the only representative of the Bar on this year’s panel. Earlier this year, Charles was awarded runner-up for Barrister of the Year at the 2025 Awards and was the only Family Law Barrister to be shortlisted in the category. Recognised in both Chambers & Partners and Legal 500 as a leading Silk, Charles is one of the few UK family law King’s Counsel acclaimed for expertise in both international children and financial work. Described as “an all-round exceptional advocate able to master both financial and children issues”, Charles is also an #Arbitrator, private FDR judge, and thought leader in family justice, with a career handling some of the most complex, high-value cases across multiple jurisdictions. Learn more about the awards here: citywealthmag.com/magic-circle-a… #FamilyLaw #ChildrenLaw #FamilyFinance #PFDR

We are delighted and proud to announce that our 2024/25 Pupil Barristers, Imogen Watkins (@ImyWatkins), Josephine Moreton and Ciara Coleman, have been offered and accepted tenancy at 4PB, starting 1st October 2025. Congratulations and welcome to the 4PB Family! #FamilyLaw #Pupillage #Tenancy

We were delighted to sponsor the Finance Update at the @ResFamilyLaw National Conference 2025! Moving away from a traditional merchandise giveaway, we instead allocated our budget of £1,000 to supporting a charitable cause. Delegates were invited to vote for the charity they would like to see supported. The votes are in, and this year, we are proud to be supporting @RCJadvice. We also congratulate Holly Stapleton, the winner of our prize draw! Thank you to everyone who participated in the vote and took the time to connect with the 4PB family throughout the conference. #Resconf2025 #FamilyLaw #AccessToJustice

Congratulations to Charles Hale KC (@twitbarrister), who was highly commended in the Barrister of the Year category at the @Citywealth Magic Circle Awards 2025. Recognised for his expertise, Charles was the only #FamilyLaw barrister shortlisted for this award. The 4PB Family is incredibly proud of his well-deserved recognition. #mca-results+post_tag:2025" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">citywealthmag.com/magic-circle-a… #FinancialRemedies #FamilyFinance

We are delighted to see Charles Hale KC featured in @Citywealth Magazine's article "𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗪𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗟𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗪𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗽𝘂𝘁𝗲𝘀." citywealthmag.com/news/why-priva… In his section, 𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲, 𝗠𝗶𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘂𝘁, Charles (@twitbarrister) discusses the impact of changes to the UK's Non-Dom rules on private wealth litigation and shares his forecast for trends in 2025. #FamilyLaw #NCDR #PrivateWealth

We are delighted to invite you to the 4PB Annual Fundraising Quiz Night on Thursday, 3 April 2025. With Team 4PB having raised nearly £10,000 for NSPCC last year, this year Greg Davies and Paul Hennessy will be taking on the London Landmarks Half Marathon (@LLHalf), fundraising for Support Through Court (@SupportTCourt). Click the link below to register as an individual or a team and join us for a fun-filled evening of quizzing with friends and colleagues, all in support of this deserving charity! Register: forms.office.com/e/WLZqdr12WC We hope you can join us on the night, but if you’re unable to, please consider making a donation via our JustGiving page to support this fantastic cause. justgiving.com/page/greg-davi… #LLHM2025 #Fundraising

The @familylawweek Financial Remedy: Practice & Procedure Conference 2025 is underway! familylawweek.co.uk/event/financia… Hosted by our very own @mani_basi, this event brings together an outstanding panel of leading experts in #FinancialRemedies, including 𝗔𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗮 𝗠𝗲𝗵𝘁𝗮, who will lead an interactive session on ‘𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗱𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀’. In this session, Anita will explore the current law, recent research, and where we go from here. #FamilyLaw

Happy International Women's Day! 🎉 Today, we proudly celebrate the incredible women in our 4PB Family who lead, inspire, and #AccelerateAction. #IWD2025 #FamilyLaw

This week, as part of International Women’s Day, 4PB’s Women’s Forum, now in its second year, brought together colleagues for meaningful discussions on career progression and well-being. Joy Brereton KC and Jacqueline Renton (@Jaxbarrister), who will be appointed King Counsel in a ceremony later this month, shared their experiences and insights in a Q&A on preparing for Silk Applications. We were also delighted to welcome Dr. Sam Davies and Farhana Shahzady (@ShahzadyLaw) of @BeckFitzgerald_, who led an open and honest conversation on #Perimenopause and #Menopause, their impact on professional life, and practical ways to navigate their challenges. #IWD2025 #AccelerateAction #FamilyLaw

As we approach International Women’s Day, 4PB proudly celebrates the remarkable women involved in leading our chambers and shaping the future of the legal profession. In line with this year’s theme, #AccelerateAction, we celebrate Barbara Mills KC (@bmillsbarrister), whose historic appointment as Chair of the Bar of England and Wales makes her the first black woman and the first person of colour to hold the role. She is also leading the first all-female officer team in the Bar Council’s 131-year history. In her inaugural address, Barbara made clear her plan to accelerate action, pledging "to raise the profile of family law and to help the Government in its mission to halve violence against women and girls." She also emphasised the importance of embedding wellbeing as "a skill and a core part of effective practice management" and committed to making "further strides in our pursuit of equality, diversity and inclusion". We also celebrate the contributions of Catherine Wood KC and Sam King KC, both highly respected family silks, who are supporting our Joint Head of Chambers, Charles Hale KC (@twitbarrister) as Acting Deputy Heads of Chambers until Barbara’s return to chambers. Catherine is renowned for her expertise in private children cases. Throughout her career, Catherine has been active in encouraging and supporting women to pursue and further develop their careers at the Bar. Catherine participates in career events at schools, acts as a mentor and provides support to aspiring barristers, including through interview practice and marshalling. Coming from a non-legal background herself, throughout her career, Catherine has been determined to follow the example of those women who went before her and gave so freely of their time to ensure accessibility to the profession. Sam is a leading Silk in public and private law children cases. Alongside a busy practice, Sam is head of pupillage at 4PB, a post she has held for five years. Appointed Silk in 2018, followed by her appointment as Master of the Bench at Middle Temple, she also holds the position of Equality and Diversity Officer for the FLBA. Sam has long been dedicated to mentoring the next generation of barristers, fostering an environment where talent can thrive, and driving change from the grassroots to create a more diverse and inclusive bar. We are immensely proud to have Catherine and Sam providing their support to Charles, while Barbara chairs the Bar. 4PB remain fully committed to accelerating action in everything we do. #IWD2025

Congratulations to Rebecca Gardner, winner of 4PB's Financial Remedy Essay Competition, whose winning essay has now been published in the Family Law Journal. You can now read Rebecca's essay, "The law on maintenance should be reformed to provide for a formulaic approach", here: 4pb.com/news/winning-e… The 4PB Alan Inglis Memorial Essay Prize 2025 is now open. For more information about the competition and prizes, visit: 4pb.com/alan-inglis-me… #FamilyLaw #EssayCompetition

RT @4PBFamilyLaw: 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 '𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝? This year's @ws_law Family Law Debate 2025 explor…

In an article published in @thetimes, Judith Murray KC and Rachel Chisholm (@rhchisholm) discuss how abusers "seek to use the court process to perpetuate further abuse". thetimes.com/article/34ac1e… Their piece, titled "𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗟𝗲𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗕𝗲 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘀 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗲", highlights the tactics employed by abusers, the impact on victims and the challenge facing the family court "to manage the process while guarding against attempted abusive behaviour". #FamilyLaw #Conduct #FinancialRemedies

Our very own Joint Head of Chambers, Barbara Mills KC (@bmillsbarrister), has made history as Chair of @thebarcouncil of England and Wales for 2025. Her groundbreaking appointment marks several historic firsts. Barbara becomes the first black woman and the first person of colour to hold the role, as well as leading the first all-female officer team in the Bar Council’s 130-year history, working alongside Vice-Chair @Kirsty_Brimelow KC and Treasurer Lucinda Orr. Barbara also becomes the first #FamilyLaw barrister in 35 years to chair the Bar since Sir Robert Johnson. In her inaugural address, Barbara outlined her personal priorities for the year. She pledged "to raise the profile of family law and to help the Government in its mission to halve violence against women and girls." She also emphasised the importance of embedding wellbeing as "a skill and a core part of effective practice management" and committed to making "further strides in our pursuit of equality, diversity and inclusion". In her closing words, Barbara drew on an African proverb from her Ghanaian upbringing: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” before inviting the Bar to "walk with [her] so we can go far together." Charles Hale KC (@twitbarrister), Joint Head of 4PB, commented: “I am delighted both for Barbara and for the Bar, that Barbara has now become Chair of the Bar of England and Wales. I know I speak on behalf of all of my Chambers, her family and friends, when I say that we are incredibly proud of what she has achieved and what she will now go on to achieve! There will be young black girls who will see what Barbara has achieved, and they will be inspired to achieve themselves. That in itself is a legacy, even before the year in office is done."

𝗨𝗽𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗲𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿: 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗱𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 Tomorrow, Anita Mehta (4PB) will be speaking at @ClassLegalUK’s first webinar of 2025. This session, starting at 5pm, is free to attend and will cover key developments in this area of financial remedies practice – set to be a major focus this year. Anita will join an expert panel including: - Samantha Hillas KC (@SJBnews) - Nicholas Allen KC (@29BedfordRow) - Nichola Gray KC (@OneHareCourt ) - Emma Hitchings (@BristolUni) - Christine Gentry (Law Commission) Topics include: 🔹The current law and practice on conduct 🔹The Fair Shares supplementary report on domestic abuse 🔹Resolution’s report on Domestic Abuse in Financial Remedy Proceedings 🔹The Law Commission Scoping Report 🔹Where do we go from here? Register here: classlegal.com/news/conduct-i… #FamilyLaw #LegalWebinar #FinancialRemedy #DomesticAbuse