Despite allegations of aged old paternalism, courts are increasingly turning to empowerment of the litigants to reach an agreement themselves, reducing the need for costly and time-consuming final hearings. In my experience, when it comes to pre-nuptial agreements and parenting plans, parties are unlikely to reach an agreement without prompting from their solicitors.
Parenting plans
A parenting plan is a menu of conversation prompts designed to enable parents to discuss all aspects of their children's' lives, both current and future, and can be disclosed to the court in the event of a dispute. It is designed to pre-empt disagreements and multiple court applications, and covers everything from schooling, to the introduction of new partners. A helpful leaflet and template is provided by Cafcass (Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service); you can find out more about parenting plans on our website here.
Pre-nuptial agreements
Unlike in the United States of America, pre-nuptial agreements are not fully binding. The court, however, should give effect to one if it is freely entered into by both parties, who are fully appreciating of its implications and unless the circumstances prevailing it are deemed fair if they were held. Essentially, if both parties take legal advice and make full disclosure, and there are no procedural irregularities, a court will endorse the agreement. Both parties should take legal advice well before the marriage ceremony to avoid legal issues, such as the perception of undue influence and the practical realities of actually getting it all done thoroughly and correctly.
For further information
To find out more about how Anthony Collins Solicitors can support you through with parenting plans or pre-nuptial agreements, please contact Elizabeth Wyatt.
The snappily named Assured Tenancies and Agricultural Occupancies (Forms) (moratorium Debt) (Consequential Amendment) (England) Regulations came into force on Monday 3 May 2021.
What is a post-nuptial agreement and why do people enter it? Find out more in this ebriefing.
This ebriefing considers the Government’s proposals to simplify the procurement procedures, as set out in Chapter 3 of the Green Paper entitled “Using the right procurement procedures”.
In the second of a two-part episode, trainee solicitors Tom Corrigan, Precious Melia and Sike Olawale discuss what a training contract looks like at Anthony Collins Solicitors.
Cases involving large-scale IT contracts are quite rare and the recent case provides a useful judgement for matters involving digital transformation projects which have gone wrong.
From 4 May 2021, The Debt Respite Scheme (Breathing Space) comes into force. This scheme provides debtors with the right to legal protection from their creditors.
Birmingham-based Anthony Collins Solicitors (ACS) has announced a raft of new promotions, including appointing three new partners.
EOTs have been aggressively marketed as a tax-free share sale, but that should not deter practitioners from raising EOTs.
Remuneration for the supply of goods and the power to award equitable allowances.
The government did not accept two of the Law Commission’s recommendations - as they saw them as important safeguards in protecting charities interests in property.
To receive invitations to our events, as well as information and articles on legal issues and sector developments that are of interest to you, please sign up to Newsroom.