The Family Law Service at Nowell Meller Solicitors brings together the full range of essential services for individuals and families who may be having difficulties in their family relationships. We believe that it is important to provide access to all services under one roof, to enable you to make clear choices at the earliest opportunity, and avoid mistaken and precipitate action.
Our areas of work include:
- Divorce
- Emergency Injunctions
- Children
- Care Proceedings
- Finances
- Civil Partnerships
- Cohabitation
- Collaborative Family Law
Preliminary Assessment and Information Giving
We offer a free or fixed-cost first assessment interview, to give you information about the choice of service, to start to build our relationship with you, and to give clear information about fees and the availability of Public Funding for both legal advice and for Mediation. Contact us for an appointment.
Process Choice
If you are unable to resolve all matters yourself “around the kitchen table”, then you will need some professional assistance. Choosing the right process is very important. The options are:
- Traditional legal representation
- Collaborative family law
- Mediation
Legal Advice and Representation
Separation and divorce raise serious, critical and often complex legal issues. They require sensitive, effective, and generally co-operative resolution. Our team of family law specialists can provide that for you. We negotiate settlements in well over 90% of cases, and assist you to put the needs of any children first. Some clients want full legal representation, whilst others require only advice and perhaps some help with the court paperwork. We will tailor our service to your needs.
Collaborative Family Law
Collaborative law is a new way of resolving disputes with dignity and respect without the threat of court proceedings. You and your partner each take independent legal advice from specially trained lawyers following which a series of face to face meetings take place with both of you and both lawyers meeting to try and reach the best solution for everyone concerned. Any issues can be discussed and the lawyers are on hand to provide legal advice and support throughout the process. You remain in control of the process and move forward at a speed with which you are comfortable, maintaining direct involvement at all times.
Family Mediation
Mediation is a process by which you and your partner can work together with the aid of our mediators to agree proposals about your children, property, finances, or any other matters. This approach does not deny conflict, but reduces the likelihood of future disagreement, is often cost-effective, and can again assist in creating better relationships for your children. You would not normally be accompanied by a lawyer. We provide the only law-firm-based Publicly Funded service in Mid-Staffordshire.
Note: we cannot provide assistance by way of Mediation and Legal Representation at the same time.
Counselling
This provides an opportunity to deal in depth with the relationship issues surrounding the marriage and its ending. It is available for any of our clients, or independently of other services. We recognise the significant emotional impact of relationship breakdown for you and your children. Recent research shows that children often suffer from an absence of information, consultation, and protection, whether within the divorce process or in cases of harm or abuse. We can provide access to information, consultation and representation and advocacy by specialist lawyers and counsellors.
Our promise to you
We will provide a cost-effective, sensitive service, tailored to the needs of yourself and your children, at reasonable cost, and looking always towards a constructive resolution of any conflicts.
