Working Together: Divorce & Separation with ‘One couple, One Lawyer’
This family service is aimed at assisting couples who are going through separation and divorce. Our approach focuses on collaborative legal guidance for financial resolutions and child-related arrangements, provided by a single experienced family lawyer.
Advantages of the One Lawyer, One Couple: Resolution Together
- Cost-Effectiveness: Our unified approach ensures that you both share the expenses of a single solicitor, eliminating the need for dual legal fees.
- Unified Solutions: With synchronised legal guidance, you can collaboratively address disputes, receiving consistent legal advice simultaneously. This minimises potential misunderstandings and inconsistencies in legal viewpoints.
- Court Avoidance: Our solicitor is dedicated to facilitating an agreement between both parties, reducing the necessity for court proceedings.
- Expert Collaboration: Depending on your needs, our process allows you to engage additional professionals who can offer specialised advice.
Challenges of the Collaborative Divorce Process
- Single Solicitor: In this approach, you share a solicitor. However, if you prefer, you have the option to seek separate legal advice.
- Communication Requirement: Effective communication and cooperation are essential in a separating relationship. Not all couples may find this process suitable due to its collaborative nature. Our experts will guide you through potential options that align with your situation.
Process Overview: From Enquiry to Resolution
- Initial Enquiry: A potential client contacts us through phone, email, live chat or the website seeking information about legal services.
- Handover to ‘Working Together’ Family Solicitor: We direct the enquiry to our skilled family solicitor.
- Scoping Meetings: Separate scoping meetings are arranged for both clients.
- First Joint Meeting (If Suitable): If found suitable, an initial joint meeting is scheduled. This session serves to identify necessary information for informed decision-making. Retainer letters are signed, confirming the nature of instructions. Meetings are scheduled once the retainer letters are signed.
- Progressive Sessions: A series of meetings unfold, encompassing discussions on financial documents and negotiation meetings to explore desired outcomes. Dedicated sessions on parenting plans for children occur as needed.
- Finalisation Meeting: A conclusive meeting is conducted, during which the necessary paperwork is drafted. This paperwork facilitates the formalisation of agreements.
- Alternative Options: If the collaborative approach isn’t deemed suitable, discussions occur during scoping meetings, and recommendations for alternative family services are provided if needed.
The Legal 500 Says:
“Emma Hopkins Jones leads the Leeds family team for Ridley & Hall, while James Cook heads up the Huddersfield office alongside Vicky Medd, who also heads the Barnsley team and the firm also works out of Pontefract. Alongside broad work regarding financial remedy after divorce, the team has a particular focus on advising women in such financial relief cases. This is complemented by the team’s domestic abuse expertise. The team has notable expertise regarding grandparents and kinship carers in children cases, for which Nigel Priestley was awarded an MBE in 2021.”
Our People
Emma Pearmaine
Managing Director
Emma Pearmaine is a family and matrimonial specialist. For almost 20 years, she has represented clients in divorce and children cases. She has particular niche expertise in matrimonial cases involving challenging business, pension, maintenance and other finance issues....
Vicky Medd
Partner
Vicky Medd is a family solicitor with over 20 years experience. She is an accredited specialist with Resolution and has a lot of experience of financial relief, and child disputes. Vicky was also recently involved in one of the first family arbitration cases in the country and has a lot of experience in dealing with cases as expeditiously as possible, whilst achieving the best outcomes for clients....
Emma Hopkins Jones
Partner
Emma joined Ridley & Hall as a Partner in September 2020. Emma is an experienced family law specialist, practising in all areas of private family law. Emma’s expertise in financial issues on separation, and in particular cases involving unmarried couples, was recognised in the Legal 500 2017....
Karen Roberts
Partner
Karen Roberts has well over 20 years practice experience as a Family Solicitor and has a warm, and approachable style. She undertakes all areas of Family Law work, representing individuals facing difficult children’s issues, domestic abuse concerns and divorces/separations involving the resolution of financial issues. She represents parents and grandparents in care proceedings brought by the Local Authority and where family and children’s placements have broken down. ...
Zuzanna Taithe
Solicitor
Since August 2019, Zuza has worked as a Paralegal in Ridley & Hall Solicitors’ Residential and Commercial Property Teams and, subsequently, as a Legal Secretary in the Care and Public Team, having previous experience in the firm as a placement student. Zuza has been awarded a Training Contract at Ridley & Hall, which commenced in July 2021. ...
Shelley Harper
Associate,Solicitor
Shelley joined Ridley & Hall Solicitors in 2020 and is a Solicitor in our family department having qualified in 2018.
Shelley completed her Law Degree at Sheffield Hallam University and continued her studies at BPP University Law School in Leeds....
Kate Hames
Solicitor
Kate joined the Family and Matrimonial Department at Ridley & Hall Solicitors in 2020.
Having graduated with a degree in Law from Northumbria University, Kate spent over 12 years working for Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service in Leeds, developing her legal knowledge and acumen within both their criminal and family law departments....
Ernestas Motiejunas
Solicitor
Ernie has practised family law since January 2021 (aside from a brief stint in conveyancing) and has been advising clients on all aspects of family law since. Ernie has worked on cases where serious domestic abuse has been a factor and has been successful in obtaining non-molestation orders, occupation orders as well as other injunctions against the other party. Ernie further has experience in advising on the validity of marriages, in particular, Islamic marriages, and has experience in making applications for declaration of validity of marriage.
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Chloe Flynn
Solicitor
Chloe joined Ridley & Hall Solicitors as a Trainee Solicitor in April 2022. Chloe completed training in Residential Property, Commercial Property and Care and Public before securing a newly qualified solicitor position in our Family and Matrimonial Department. Chloe joined the Family and Matrimonial team in July 2023 and qualified as a solicitor in September 2023....
