Whenever we are involved in divorce and relationship breakdown where children are involved there are nearly always added tensions, disagreements and upset. Making sure the interests of the children come first is what both parents might believe they are doing – but when it comes to our role as lawyers the law makes absolutely sure that is the end result. Although now 21 years old the Children Act is still one of the most talked about pieces of family law of the last 25 years, something celebrated recently with a series of programmes on the BBC looking at its impact on families and divorce.

Why it was so groundbreaking is that, for the first time, it put the rights of the children first and foremost, enshrining them in law over and above any claims or declaration of rights that parents had, or thought that they had.

Among the main principles are that:

• The welfare of children must be the paramount consideration when the courts are making decisions about them
• The concept of parental responsibility has replaced that of parental rights.

The Children Act paved the way for the removal of the recovery of child maintenance from the courts to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Child Support Agency (CSA), now the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission (CMEC).

It also replaced two of the most misunderstood terms in family law – custody and access. The reality is that these two terms are still used much more than their successors, residence and contact, so has anything really changed 21 years on?

Parental responsibility remains an important topic, particularly in this day and age when step-parents are commonplace. It relates to what responsibilities (not rights) an adult has to make important decisions for a child, like whether they can give permission for an emergency medical procedure or if they have a say in the child’s education. Biological mothers automatically have it, as do fathers married to the mothers at birth and unmarried fathers who are named on the birth certificate (provided the child was born after December 1, 2003). Other than that, parental responsibility has to be applied for. So a step-dad looking after children during the summer holiday will not be able to agree to any emergency medical treatment if it is needed unless they have successfully applied for parental responsibility.

Regarding residence and contact, these are issues that any couple going through a break-up and who have children will need to discuss. The difference these days from how things were in 1989 is that they will not be able to shout about their rights to see the children. It is all about the children’s rights, which has to be a good thing.

To find out more about the law relating to children in divorce, visit www.family-lawfirm.co.uk

Sue Stewart is a conveyancing executive with H Pipes and Co Solicitors, in Melbourne, Derbyshire. She has spent her entire career dealing in property issues and knows just how important it is to adopt the right approach with clients going through a divorce.

“I have always done residential conveyancing. I love the clients and it is really rewarding when they call up to say thank you,” said Sue, who has two sons and four grand-daughters.

“We are most commonly called into play during a divorce when property is divided or one of the parties needs to buy a new home. Going through a break-up is always a difficult time in someone’s life so we really have to bear that in mind when we are working with them.

“Patience is a real virtue in this job and I think you have to have a way with people. You have to be very sympathetic to their situation.”

Sue started as a junior after leaving school, and has gone on to work as a conveyancing executive at a number of firms around Coalville and Melbourne.

Sue offers conveyancing and allied legal services. To contact her, call 01332 862113, or email Barbara@pipessolicitors.co.uk

Gathering evidence – keep it legal!

The Court of Appeal is to decide if two brothers who stole 20,000 documents to help their sister in her divorce from her multimillionaire husband should be allowed to use them to expose the true state of his finances, The Times reports.

Property tycoons Robert and Vincent Tchenguiz claim that they should not have to hand back the stolen data, which they took from Vivian Imerman, the former owner of Del Monte Foods, to help their sister, Lisa Tchenguiz, in her claim for £100 million.

They argue that the material, taken from a computer in the office that Mr Imerman shared with the Tchenguiz brothers, is needed because Mr Imerman is concealing his true financial position.

Desmond Browne, QC, representing the brothers claims that Mr Imerman’s right to confidentiality had to be weighed against the right of his wife to a fair trial.The hearing continues.

“What’s interesting here is the whole issue of ‘full and frank disclosure,’” says Woolley & Co senior partner Andrew Woolley.

“In order for any decision on a financial settlement to be made both parties are required to disclose details of all their assets, property, pensions and business interests. The suggestion here is that Mr Imerman has failed to be ‘full and frank’. Whilst we can’t condone the actions of the brothers as divorce lawyers, we’d certainly want our client to have access to all the financial documents so that a fair settlement could be arrived at.”

Forget pressies, show us the money!

A new survey has shown that an increasing number of couples are shunning wedding lists in favour of cash.

The poll for Wedding magazine found 45 per cent of couples would prefer their guests to give them money, while 29 per cent wanted gifts from a wedding list and 26 per cent opted for vouchers to pay for the honeymoon.

More than half (55 per cent) of the couples said they would pay for their weddings themselves, with just 26 per cent of parents footing the bill. The average spend was more than £20,000.

The celebrity couple whose relationship they most aspired to was Jamie and Louise Redknapp.

Andrew Woolley, managing partner with Woolley & Co family law specialists, believes the change is simply a sign of the times, with most couples setting up home before they get married so they already have many of the things traditionally bought as wedding presents.

“Toasters, crockery, cutlery and the like may have traditionally been bought but most couples these days already have that sort of thing, so money is an understandable option – though I can’t see the Redknapps asking for either money or a toaster!,” he said.

“However, it again brings to the fore the importance of couples understanding the legal implications of marriage, like having certain responsibilities regarding joint finances, and how important it is to make provision straight away in case anything goes wrong.”

Runaway bride – and groom!

A bride and groom and 20 of their wedding guests completed Edinburgh's Great Run just two hours before the couple got married, reports the BBC.

Anna Henly convinced friends and family to run the 10km route for Macmillan Cancer Support in memory of her brother-in-law who died last year.

She later married Robin McBride in a ceremony at Edinburgh Castle.

Diary of a Divorce

The episodic diary will follow a Woolley & Co client as she goes through the process of getting a divorce from her estranged husband. The idea is not just to demonstrate the course that needs to be charted and the professional services that may be needed along the way, but also gives an insight into the swiftly changing emotions someone goes through.

To read the diary, which will be updated regularly, go to http://www.family-lawfirm.co.uk/Diary/.