Often the people who lose out most in a separation are the grandparents. They haven't been involved, they're not in the divorce, but they can be left unable to see their grandchildren.
This week Simon Hughes, the Justice Minster, has confirmed in a written parliamentary answer that last year there were seven applications a day by grandparents for a court order to see a grandchild after the divorce or separation of the child's parents.
In law, grandparents sadly have no automatic legal rights. It would be possible to seek permission to apply for a Contact Order to see the grandchildren, but this in itself would have to be put before the court. If successful, a Contact Order can then be sought, in which it could be stipulated how often the grandparents would have direct contact (e.g. visits) and indirect contact (e.g. letters, videos etc). The courts are mindful of the positive impact grandparents can have on children, but are also unwilling to cause further disruption to family relationships.
Legal Aid is no longer available for grandparents, so many just walk away and lose contact. However, we are able to help and it needn't cost the earth.
If you are a grandparent who feels they are losing, or have lost contact with a grandchild, do give us a ring. We now have a weekly clinic where you can ask for FREE advice to do with families, children, separation and divorce. We really can help. Ring us on 029 2039 5888 for further details.
Monday, 23 February 2015
Monday, 16 February 2015
Revenge porn now a criminal offence.
Following on from my blog of last week, revenge porn is now a crime. A new clause in the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill, which obtained Royal Assent last week, specifically forbids "Disclosing private sexual photographs and films with intent to cause distress". It carries a maximum jail sentence of two years - up from six months under other laws previously used to prosecute revenge porn offenders.
However, some things haven’t been tackled - as even if the legislation punishes the perpetrators, it doesn’t help remove the images from the internet. A new government helpline for revenge porn, also launched last week, will offer legal advice on how to remove pictures and may get closer to the heart of the problem.
With the speed and reach of the internet today, the effects of revenge porn on the victim can be devastating - with images shared with family, friends and work colleagues.
If you have been, or fear you might be, the victim of revenge porn then do get in touch with us. Sally Fitzherbert in our Family Law team will be happy to help you.
However, some things haven’t been tackled - as even if the legislation punishes the perpetrators, it doesn’t help remove the images from the internet. A new government helpline for revenge porn, also launched last week, will offer legal advice on how to remove pictures and may get closer to the heart of the problem.
With the speed and reach of the internet today, the effects of revenge porn on the victim can be devastating - with images shared with family, friends and work colleagues.
If you have been, or fear you might be, the victim of revenge porn then do get in touch with us. Sally Fitzherbert in our Family Law team will be happy to help you.
Monday, 9 February 2015
Helpline launched for victims of revenge porn
Revenge porn is when people upload explicit photos and videos of their ex-partners online without their consent. Now a revenge porn helpline has been launched to give victims legal advice and information on how to get images taken down.
The idea behind it is to encourage victims to come forward and talk about what's happening confidentially.
Folami Prehaye, the founder of a revenge porn support website - who was a victim herself - says something like this would have helped her massively at the time.
"I felt isolated and embarrassed by what had happened to me," she explains.
"If there had been a helpline around at least I could have talked to someone in confidence."
The National Stalking Helpline, Women's Aid and the UK Safer Internet Centre all say the problem's become more common, with a rise in the number of complaints.
Figures obtained by the Press Association in September 2014 showed girls as young as 11 had been victims of revenge porn.
The majority of the people posting the images were male, with their subjects usually being young females.
Some shared images - sometimes recorded during the relationship - with the victims' family and friends, while others used the footage to blackmail them.
"I set up my website to offer support to victims who made contact with me, and to encourage other women to come forward," says Folami Prehaye. "Now this helpline will help everyone that needs support and advice."
If you have been a victim of revenge porn and need legal advice, talk to Sally Fitzherbert in our Family Team.
The idea behind it is to encourage victims to come forward and talk about what's happening confidentially.
Folami Prehaye, the founder of a revenge porn support website - who was a victim herself - says something like this would have helped her massively at the time.
"I felt isolated and embarrassed by what had happened to me," she explains.
"If there had been a helpline around at least I could have talked to someone in confidence."
The National Stalking Helpline, Women's Aid and the UK Safer Internet Centre all say the problem's become more common, with a rise in the number of complaints.
Figures obtained by the Press Association in September 2014 showed girls as young as 11 had been victims of revenge porn.
The majority of the people posting the images were male, with their subjects usually being young females.
Some shared images - sometimes recorded during the relationship - with the victims' family and friends, while others used the footage to blackmail them.
"I set up my website to offer support to victims who made contact with me, and to encourage other women to come forward," says Folami Prehaye. "Now this helpline will help everyone that needs support and advice."
If you have been a victim of revenge porn and need legal advice, talk to Sally Fitzherbert in our Family Team.
Monday, 2 February 2015
Clare's law used over 1300 times in last year
Clare's Law - named after Clare Wood, who was murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 2009 - came into force across England and Wales in March 2014.
At least 1,335 disclosures have been made so far, police figures obtained by the Press Association show.
Miss Wood's father said he was "quietly delighted" the law was being used.
The figures, released following Freedom of Information requests, show there have been at least 3,760 applications under the law so far - resulting in the 1,335 disclosures. The true totals are likely to be higher, as three police forces did not release their statistics.
The figures include both "right to ask" cases - where information was requested - and "right to know" - where police warn potential victims without being asked to do so.
Clare's Law was rolled out in March last year, following a 14-month pilot in Gwent, Wiltshire, Nottinghamshire and Greater Manchester.
Outside the four forces involved with the pilot, Lancashire had the highest number of disclosures at 146, while Norfolk had the lowest, with five.
The police figures show variation between forces in terms of the likelihood of requests being granted - more than 60% of requests in Greater Manchester led to information being released, compared with 11% in Merseyside. Hazel Blears, Labour MP for Salford and Eccles, said this suggested the law was being "applied in different ways". She also said "I will be writing to the home secretary to ask what is being done to review its use and ensure best practice is shared across the country and the right decisions are made.”
Under Clare's Law, otherwise known as the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, men and women can request information about their partner, or third parties such as friends or relatives can make requests if they are "concerned".
Police and other agencies including social services then consider whether releasing information on someone's past is "necessary, lawful and proportionate" to protect someone from their partner.
Reasons for information not being released include a partner not having a record of abuse offences, or there being no "pressing need for disclosure" based on the information found.
Clare's Law does not apply in Northern Ireland, while a pilot scheme is being run in Scotland.
For the full story from BBC news, click here
At least 1,335 disclosures have been made so far, police figures obtained by the Press Association show.
Miss Wood's father said he was "quietly delighted" the law was being used.
The figures, released following Freedom of Information requests, show there have been at least 3,760 applications under the law so far - resulting in the 1,335 disclosures. The true totals are likely to be higher, as three police forces did not release their statistics.
The figures include both "right to ask" cases - where information was requested - and "right to know" - where police warn potential victims without being asked to do so.
Clare's Law was rolled out in March last year, following a 14-month pilot in Gwent, Wiltshire, Nottinghamshire and Greater Manchester.
Outside the four forces involved with the pilot, Lancashire had the highest number of disclosures at 146, while Norfolk had the lowest, with five.
The police figures show variation between forces in terms of the likelihood of requests being granted - more than 60% of requests in Greater Manchester led to information being released, compared with 11% in Merseyside. Hazel Blears, Labour MP for Salford and Eccles, said this suggested the law was being "applied in different ways". She also said "I will be writing to the home secretary to ask what is being done to review its use and ensure best practice is shared across the country and the right decisions are made.”
Under Clare's Law, otherwise known as the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, men and women can request information about their partner, or third parties such as friends or relatives can make requests if they are "concerned".
Police and other agencies including social services then consider whether releasing information on someone's past is "necessary, lawful and proportionate" to protect someone from their partner.
Reasons for information not being released include a partner not having a record of abuse offences, or there being no "pressing need for disclosure" based on the information found.
Clare's Law does not apply in Northern Ireland, while a pilot scheme is being run in Scotland.
For the full story from BBC news, click here
Monday, 26 January 2015
Facebook cited in a third of all divorce cases
I have previously warned of the dangers of using social media when you are in the throes of a divorce. However, you should also be careful BEFORE you get to the divorce stage, however rocky your marriage may be.
Research by a Leeds law firm has found that Facebook is now used in over 66% of all divorce cases - whether it is photographs, proof of where people have been (automatic geo-tagging will let your 'friends' know that you were in a certain restaurant, cafe - or hotel) and details of holidays taken and cars bought being used as proof of a certain level of income.
Whilst it might be to your advantage to have Facebook available in a divorce, just make sure that you're not the one that it gets used against.
Be very careful!
Research by a Leeds law firm has found that Facebook is now used in over 66% of all divorce cases - whether it is photographs, proof of where people have been (automatic geo-tagging will let your 'friends' know that you were in a certain restaurant, cafe - or hotel) and details of holidays taken and cars bought being used as proof of a certain level of income.
Whilst it might be to your advantage to have Facebook available in a divorce, just make sure that you're not the one that it gets used against.
Be very careful!
Monday, 19 January 2015
Divorce fees not to be increased
At last some good news - the Ministry of Justice has abandoned plans to increase the divorce application fee from £410 to £750 after an outcry over the proposed increase.
The reasons for not going ahead included:
Sadly though, the fee isn’t going down - the Ministry of Justice said that a decrease couldn’t be justified “in the current financial climate”.
At least it’s not going up!
The reasons for not going ahead included:
- There was no justification for an increased fee
- People would be deterred from seeking a divorce if the fee went up
- Courts shouldn’t make further profits out of the breakdown of marriages.
- If the costs were higher, more people would stay in violent or unhappy marriages
- It could discriminate against women - more women than men seek a divorce so higher fees would have a disproportionate impact on women.
- Recent reforms to fee remissions mean that fewer people qualify so more would struggle to pay the fee.
Sadly though, the fee isn’t going down - the Ministry of Justice said that a decrease couldn’t be justified “in the current financial climate”.
At least it’s not going up!
Monday, 5 January 2015
More parties unrepresented in the Family courts
Statistics released by the Ministry of Justice last week show that the number of cases where neither party had legal representation has risen by 40% since the changes to Legal Aid came into force in April 2013. This means that neither side had the benefit of a solicitor standing next to them to guide them through what is often already a very stressful process.
We appreciate that lawyers can seem expensive and you may think you can cope on your own - but we do appreciate the costs to you, and so we are always happy to work on a 'pay as you go' basis in order that you can have as much (or as little) advice as you need. If your divorce is already agreed, including finances and arrangements for your children, you may decide to go to court alone. However, if there is any argument at all, paying for legal advice could well be good value in the long run and will help protect your rights and interests.
If you or someone you know finds yourself needing to be in court and without representation, do remember that we are here to advise. Have a look at our website or contact us for more information - we'd like to think we can help you.
We appreciate that lawyers can seem expensive and you may think you can cope on your own - but we do appreciate the costs to you, and so we are always happy to work on a 'pay as you go' basis in order that you can have as much (or as little) advice as you need. If your divorce is already agreed, including finances and arrangements for your children, you may decide to go to court alone. However, if there is any argument at all, paying for legal advice could well be good value in the long run and will help protect your rights and interests.
If you or someone you know finds yourself needing to be in court and without representation, do remember that we are here to advise. Have a look at our website or contact us for more information - we'd like to think we can help you.
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