Family

• Adoption OrderThe court order when a child is...
• AnnulTo declare no longer...
• Cafcass Cafcass is an organisation that represents children in family court cases in England. It is independent of the courts and social services. In private law proceedings it operates to offer guidance to the court by way of undertaking safeguarding checks and...
• Calderbank LetterThis is a letter making an offer of settlement prior to the case going to hearing, similar to a Part 36...
• Care OrderThis is an order which places a child in the care of the local...
• Child MaintenanceMoney due from a non-resident parent to the parent with whom the child...
• Civil PartnerA member of a same-sex...
• Clean break This is where financial matters are agreed by the parties in full and final settlement and there is no ongoing financial arrangement between them either in terms of income or...
• Collaborative LawA form of dispute resolution in which family lawyers and their clients agree in writing to reach a settlement without court...
• Consent OrderAn order which is negotiated and agreed by both parties and sanctioned by the...
• CustodySee...
• Decree AbsoluteA court order which dissolves a...
• Decree NisiThis is a document which is issued once the court is satisfied that the grounds of divorce are...
• Emergency Protection OrderThis is made when a child is deemed to be in immediate danger and may have to be taken away from home...
• Financial Dispute Resolution (FDR) This is designed to enable parties to discuss and negotiate a final settlement of the matrimonial...
• First directions appointment (FDA) This allows a Court to see if any agreement can be reached between the parties or identify any further steps which need to be...
• Guardian ad Litem aka Children's guardian A Guardian ad Litem, or Children’s guardian, is a person who is appointed by the court to fairly and competently conduct proceedings on behalf of a child. They are appointed for children who are the subject of, and party to, certain types of family...
• InfantA person under 18 years of...
• Interim Care OrderThis places a child in the care of the local authority on an interim basis whilst the family is assessed and until the court can make a final...
• Judicial SeparationA decree short of divorce, under which a couple remains legally married but their normal marital obligations cease and they no longer have to go on living...
• JuvenilePerson under 17 years of...
• Lump sum orderOrder for the payment of a capital sum from one party to...
• Maintenance A sum of money paid by one party to support the other...
• Maintenance pending suitA maintenance order for a sum of money made before the final order in...
• MediationThe process through which separating couples seek to reach an...
• MinorSomeone below 18 years of...
• Next FriendA person representing a minor or person deemed to lack mental capacity, who is involved in legal...
• Nominal MaintenanceA maintenance order which consists of a very small amount that it is not anticipated will be paid (simply to retain keep maintenance...
• Occupation OrderThis decides who should live in a home after there has been violence or...
• Party CitedA person is brought into divorce proceedings, with whom the Respondent is alleged to have committed...
• Pension attachmentThis allows the Court to make an Order directing Pension Trustees to pay a percentage of the lump sum or pension on maturity to the person named in the Order (previously knoan as...
• Pension sharingThe transfer of a specified amount from one party’s pension into a pension scheme of the other party’s...
• PetitionA method of commencing divorce...
• Police Protection OrderThis is where the police place a child under police protection if they think that the child is in immediate...
• Post Nuptial AgreementThis is essentially a Pre Nuptial Agreement which is entered into during or after the...
• Pre Nuptial AgreementAn agreeement before marriage takes place, as to how assets should be split if a marriage breaks down - it is generally not enforced by British...
• Private Law Proceedings This is the term used to describe applications made to the court by private individuals (e.g. parents, grandparents or siblings) for orders in relation to children. This might relate to where a child lives, how much or whether the child sees the applicant...
• Prohibited Steps OrderThis is a court order prohibiting the person specified in the order from taking a certain step - eg. to prevent a parent removing a child from the court's...
• Proprietary Estoppel Proprietary estoppel is a fair, or equitable, remedy to stop the legal owner of a property from asserting their strict legal positon when it would be unfair or inequitable for him to do so. For a successful claim of proprietary estoppel, the claimant must...
• ResidenceThis refers to where and with whom a child...
• Secured periodical paymentsWhere periodical payments are secured by the investment of a capital...
• Special Guardianship OrderAn order which gives the holder parental responsibility for a child and which allows them to use that to the exclusion of any other person with parental...
• Statement of ArrangementsA form setting out the details of arrangements for the children after the...
• Ward of CourtThe title given to a minor who is the subject of a wardship...
• Wardship OrderThe order ensures that custody of the minor is held by the Court with everyday care of the minor being carried out by an individual or local authority, with all decisions regarding the upbringing of the minor to be approved by the...
• Yardstick of EqualityThis is a principle applied for sharing the value of the assets left after the needs of the parties for housing, child care and day to day living costs have been...