Private law
Private Law Children, Injunction and Domestic Abuse
When relationships break down within a family it can be difficult to galvanise child-focused change or manage interactions safely and effectively. Our specialist private family law practitioners are here to help. The team provides clients with pragmatic, focused and sensitive advice and solutions across the full breadth of the discipline when they need it most.
Recognised as leaders in the field collectively and individually by legal directories such as Chambers UK and Legal 500, the 3PB private family team are variously described as the ‘go-to chambers for family work with a good range of practitioners from junior through to silks’... and an ‘excellent set of chambers [that] also provides excellent training’ and 'an excellent service with a wealth of knowledge and high calibre barristers’. The team boasts experienced members across all of our officers who appear on a daily basis in courts across the UK.
The team advise on all issues including:
- Residence
- Contact
- Cross-Jurisdictional Issues
- Prohibited Steps
- Specific Issue
- Leave to Remove
- Parental Responsibility
- Special Guardianship
- Human Rights
- Parental Alienation
- Wardship
- Non Molestation hearings
- Occupation hearings
- Enforcement hearings
- External and Internal relocation cases
- Abduction
- Serious allegations of sexual or physical abuse
- Surrogacy and Fertility issues
- LGBT co-parenting cases
- SEN matters
- Adoption.
The size of the team and the breadth of experience from which we are able to draw enables us to offer strength in depth in this complex and varied area of the law. Our six-office geographical footprint enables us to quickly provide counsel at short notice in courts across all circuits and uniquely equips our practitioners with the ability to offer tailored and bespoke advice and guidance based on real-world, worked experience of the new Pathfinder project; our team having been at the cutting edge of the developments in the Dorset and North Wales, where the programme was piloted in March 2022.
What is Pathfinder?
The key focus of the Pathfinder approach is to allow for more comprehensive information to be gathered by key agencies at the earliest stage to avoid delay and ensure tailored and targeted support is provided to each family as they travel through proceedings. The program also makes provision for children to be involved from start so that where appropriate, they have a sense of agency to participate in proceedings in the way they want to.
Under the Pathfinder model an application for a private family law order is passed to a Case Progression Officer who conducts an initial ‘sift’ of the application to consider whether there is an urgent need for a hearing or not. In every case (whether urgent hearing is required or not) the Case Progression Officer will refer the case to either CAFCASS or the Local Authority so that a Family Court Adviser may be allocated. Once allocated, the Family Court Adviser prepares a Child Impact Report for which they are required to:
a. Engage meaningfully with the parents to understand the key issues in dispute
b. Obtain information other agencies where appropriate (such as police, the local authority. domestic abuse agencies, schools and GPs) and
c. Allow the children opportunity to engage in discussion about their views and concerns.
This process is undertaken in the eight weeks following issue and is followed by “gatekeeping” in week 8. At this stage the Child Impact Report is used by a Case Progression Officer to inform decision making about the next steps for proceedings. Depending on the issues, the court at this stage is able (without holding a hearing) to:
a. Endorse settlement of the proceedings with a consent order
b. Refer the parties for mediation
c. Make directions for disclosure of any further information required
d. List the matter for a decision hearing (if there are no safeguarding concerns)
e. List the matter for directions.
If required, any subsequent court hearing is tailored to serve the specific needs highlighted. At this stage the court will reflect on the CIR and consider next steps; whether that be via supporting the parties to work towards the imposition of a final order at a decision hearing or making provision for further investigation of the facts at a directions hearing. If a need for further investigation or involvement of the court is identified, directions are given for such work to be completed. Once this work has been completed, the court will list the matter for final hearing at which stage final orders will be made and consideration will be given to how the outcome should be communicated to the children and whether review of the progress of any order made is necessary.
How can we help
In circumstances where the complexion of family practice is changing, establishing and maintaining currency in new practices and approaches is crucial to ensuring that clients can access the highest possible calibre of advice and support. Our team is uniquely equipped with this currency enabling them to support clients in managing proceedings from inception to completion; advising on and drafting C100 / C1A applications to accurately trigger pathway allocations, maximising the court’s engagement with key issues, managing evidence and providing focused and realistic advice on prospects.
Our Family Barristers...
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Imogen Robins MCIarb has re-joined 3PB (3 Paper Buildings) from Pump Court Chambers where she has practised since joining them in 2016. A distinguished family law specialist renowned for her expertise in family finance, Imogen has an exceptional success record in advising high-net-worth (HNW) divorcing couples. Her practice centres on handling complex financial cases which include inherited wealth, property portfolios, family businesses, significant pensions, trusts, and pre-nuptial agreements. Instructed in cases under Schedule 1 of...
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Frida Dahlqvist (2014 call) has moved to 3PB (3 Paper Buildings) from KCH Garden Square Chambers in Nottingham/Leicester where she is a much-requested family barrister with a strong practice in care proceedings and private law children disputes. Frida is also renowned as a highly effective cross-examiner and attended FLBA’s “Advocacy and the Vulnerable” training course. In care proceedings, Frida Dahlqvist is frequently instructed by local authorities but also has extensive experience of representing parents and...
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3PB Barristers (3 Paper Buildings) are delighted to welcome leading family silk, June Venters KC, to its 80-strong team of family barristers as a full tenant. June Venters KC is a dual-qualified barrister and solicitor who brings with her over 40 years of experience in family law and children disputes. June was called to the bar in 2017, having been made the first woman solicitor QC in 2006. June is a qualified family mediator, civil...
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3 Paper Buildings (3PB) has welcomed family barrister Rachel Temple (2004 call) to its 80-strong team of family law counsel. Rachel specialises in public and private law children work and has practised exclusively in disputes over children for the last 14 years and built up an exceptional track record in complex care work. Formerly at Thomas More Chambers in London, Rachel now lives in the West Country and practises principally from 3PB's Bristol office. Rachel...
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3PB welcomes family barrister Emma Mabey from 2 Dr Johnson Building in the Temple, London where she has built a busy and varied public and private law family practice, focussing on disputes over children. She is regularly instructed to represent parents and local authorities in fact find hearings, DOLs and final hearings and represents all parties in increasingly complex cases. A former social worker, Emma spent 16 years in children and families social work, focusing...
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His Honour Stephen Wildblood KC, who retired as a Circuit Judge on Tuesday 21st November, has announced that he is joining national chambers 3PB (3 Paper Buildings) with immediate effect as an associate tenant. Stephen will be accepting appointments as a Private FDR Judge and, in relation to finances and children, as a mediator and early neutral evaluator. He is also intending to qualify as family law arbitrator in the immediate future. He will continue...
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Senior family barrister Susan Todd, pictured here, has joined 3PB (3 Paper Buildings) from St Philips Chambers today and will work from the national chambers' Birmingham office. Called to the Bar in 1991, Susan has specialised in public and private law children cases for over thirty years. She works in the Family Court and the Family Division for parents, grandparents, intervenors and children's guardians. She prides herself on providing a committed service to every client,...
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3PB (3 Paper Buildings) family barrister Eleanor Marsh (pictured here) has written a brief guide to delays in court proceedings and whether these are creating a new ‘status quo’ for children and the impact of such delays upon the welfare decisions made at final hearing. This article in the Family Law Journal, published this month, takes a look specifically at s 1(3)(c) of the Children Act 1989: the likely effect on the child of any...
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3PB Barristers (3 Paper Buildings) is delighted to announce that private and public law children barrister Grant Keyes, from Senate House Chambers in Northampton, is to join its 80-strong team of family barristers with immediate effect. Grant Keyes (2007 call), pictured here, represents parents, children through their children’s guardians and intervenors in a wide range of family law cases at all levels of judiciary including the Court of Appeal. He is often working in cases...
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Top children expert Nigel Hawkins (pictured here), who qualified as a solicitor in 1994 and has over 25 years’ experience of advocacy in family law and specialises in public and private children proceedings, has joined the 80-strong family team at national chambers 3 Paper Buildings (3PB). A member of the Law Society's Children Law Accreditation Scheme, Nigel is a regular favourite of court-appointed Children's Guardians - and the former head of the Child Care Department...
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The second Jersey International Child Law Conference, sponsored by law firm Corbett Le Quesne, was chaired by 3 Paper Buildings' (3PB) family barrister and silk Elizabeth McGrath KC. The conference took place on Friday at The Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel in St Helier. The child law conference was again hugely successful with delegates hearing on both private and public law issues. The theme was “Breaking the Cycle”, with sessions led by lawyers, psychologists and experts...
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We are delighted to announce that former Circuit Judge His Honour Martin Dancey, pictured here, is to join 3PB with immediate effect. An Associate member of chambers, Martin Dancey will be accepting appointments as a Private FDR Judge and is offering a conciliation and early neutral evaluation service in private law children cases, helping families find solutions. Hamish Dunlop, Head of 3PB's Family Finance team, said: "As the Designated Family Judge on the South Coast,...
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