England - London • Private client
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Family: mediation

Family Law in Partnership Ltd

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Family Law in Partnership Ltd is praised for its ‘ability to create an environment where clients feel safe and able to express themselves’. Its commitment to mediation lies at the core of the firm. The excellent practice fields a number of leading mediators such as the ’reassuring‘ Dominic Raeside who is a ’brilliant children mediator with years of experience’. Raeside offers sole and co-mediation and is qualified to offer child inclusive mediation, hybrid mediation and civil/commercial mediation. James Pirrie has an ‘ability to easily build a rapport with clients’ – he is a senior mediator, who is also qualified in child inclusive mediation and in commercial & hybrid mediation. David Allison has senior mediator status with the Family Mediators Association. Also recommended is Ruth Smallacombe, who is a senior accredited mediator and counsellor, practice consultant and trainer of mediators, lawyers and therapists. Elizabeth Fletcher’s practice covers all family law issues, although more recently her work has had a particular focus on children matters.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘James has a very approachable and down to earth manner. He is hugely knowledgeable in family law and relays this in a way that assists in the mediation’.

  • ‘ James has huge amounts of energy! Indefatigable - which in the context of working in a mediation is a key requirement. He is very personable- clients love him and more importantly they trust his input'.

  • ‘Liz Fletcher is very skilled in financial matters in particular. She allows participants time to evaluate all the options which she explains clearly to them'.

  • ‘Dominic has huge experience. He is extremely skilled and a perfect supervisor as a mediator. He is very good on children disputes and making parties work hard to resolve issues'.

  • ‘Nicole understands how mediation works and was supportive of the mediation process. She is thoughtful, knowledgeable and focused on getting a fair outcome for families in mediation'.

  • ‘Dominic is able to win the ears (and respect) of both parties, no matter how much water under the bridge. He unlocks tricky areas which have built up over the years and helps to diminish tension between the parties so that they can have a healthy dialogue beyond'. 

  • 'Ruth has a warm and personable approach. She is extremely experienced and puts clients at ease immediately. She listens and makes you feel heard. She is measured and calm in her approach even if the clients are not.’

  • ‘Elizabeth is a strong communicator with excellent client skills and her mediation practice is a credit to her. She has the ability to break down complex legal principles into bite-size chunks, negotiation skills and empathy in the bucketful’.

Lawyers

Hall of Fame
The lawyers at the very top of the profession, widely known and respected by peers and clients for their longstanding involvement in market-leading work.
Dominic Raeside
Hall of fameFamily Law in Partnership Ltd
Dominic is one of the five principals who founded Family Law in Partnership in 1995. As Head of Mediation, Dominic holds the strong belief that whilst separation and divorce is often a difficult and painful transition, it does not have to destroy a family. Dominic’s practice is focused on helping couples reach a consensus about their future as it relates to their children, finances and housing. Dominic mediates both domestic and cross border family disputes including international child abduction, access and custody cases. Having worked for many years in the Courts advising the judiciary in contested children’s matters and previously having worked in the field of adult psychiatry, Dominic has a range of skills, knowledge and experience which he uses to help his clients to reach agreement. His work has earned Dominic a reputation as one of the most experienced and respected mediators in the country – many of his mediation clients are referred to him by the top family lawyers in the country. In 2013 Dominic was appointed to the prestigious role of the Family Mediator member of the Family Justice Council.In addition to his work as a Mediator, Dominic is a UKCP registered family and systemic psychotherapist and he sees clients in conjunction with his lawyer colleagues where he offers consultation on the child related, emotional and psychological aspects of divorce and separation.
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The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
David Allison
Hall of fameFamily Law in Partnership Ltd
David is a director at Family Law in Partnership who has specialised in family law for over 25 years. David's clients include business owners, entrepreneurs, bankers, other lawyers and their partners. The focus of David's practice is financial claims on divorce, particularly those with an international dimension, and the legal issues affecting cohabitants, same sex couples and civil partners. David settles the vast majority of his cases outside the court process but where cases have to go to court he is a determined and effective litigator. His goal is to achieve the best outcome for his client and to do so in a way that produces an efficient, fair and positive result. David is a trained mediator and has FMA senior mediator status. He is an experienced collaborative lawyer and is a Resolution collaborative specialist. David lectures, writes and broadcasts extensively on a wide range of family law matters including on issues affecting cohabitants and same sex couples.
James Pirrie
Hall of fameFamily Law in Partnership Ltd
James is a director at Family Law in Partnership. He specialises in complex financial issues arising from divorce and separation and non-adversarial and cost effective approaches to divorce including mediation, arbitration and collaborative law. James also has a strong track record of helping clients to achieve excellent outcomes in the Court system. James led Resolution's “Parenting after Parting” inititative to heighten lawyers' awareness of positive co-parenting. James is also the founder of Divorce Diaries, a collection of insights and experiences of former clients going through divorce or separation. He was one of the first lawyers to train as both a collaborative lawyer and a family arbitrator and James is qualified to arbitrate both financial disputes and children matters. As a trained mediator he is also qualified in the commercial model of mediation and direct child consultation.
Ruth Smallacombe
Family Law in Partnership Ltd
Ruth is a senior accredited mediator and counsellor, practice consultant and trainer of mediators, lawyers and therapists. She has over 30 years’ experience in family, mental health and human relations, both in the public and private sectors. Ruth’s expertise covers the full spectrum of family issues ranging from divorce and separation (including finance and housing matters) to children matters (including residence and contact issues, international relocation of children and schooling) and mediation in relation to pre- and post-nuptial agreements, civil partnership and cohabitation agreements. She offers preparation and support to couples about to embark on mediation with other firms or court proceedings. Ruth also acts as a family consultant and sees clients in conjunction with her lawyer colleagues. She is an experienced counsellor with a depth and breadth of knowledge in this field and can offer couple counselling, when appropriate. Ruth’s clients include individuals, couples (including same sex couples), family members in dispute and children and young people, whom she sees either as part of their parent’s mediation process or for one to one counselling sessions.
Elizabeth Fletcher
Family Law in Partnership Ltd
Elizabeth is a director at Family Law in Partnership. She focuses on all aspects of family breakdown but has a particular interest in managing arrangements for children both in and out of the court arena as well as resolving financial disputes arising from the breakdown of a marriage or relationship. Elizabeth’s clients include professionals and business owners & executives, as well as stay at home parents, including those who have an international background. As the mother of two young children herself, Elizabeth understands all the practical aspects that need to be addressed by parents dealing with a separation and the different anxieties which parents may have in managing those issues. Elizabeth is committed to resolving issues constructively both in and out of court. She is a trained mediator and collaborative lawyer. Elizabeth is a member of The Law Society's Family Law Committee.

Other key lawyers

Dominic Raeside, David Allison, Elizabeth Fletcher, James Pirrie, Ruth Smallacombe, Nicole Phillips

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