We have one of the strongest child law teams in the South West, which includes 3 current and 2 lapsed Children Panel Members. There is between 80 – 100 years of children panel membership between our team!
We regularly receive instructions to act for children and as agents for a local authority.
We remain committed to Child Law Legal Aid work.
We are now looking to add to our team.
We are looking for an ambitious solicitor with ambitions to join our equity.
Person specification:
Genuine long term opportunities.
We have Lexsis PSL and Library
There are definite partnership opportunities for the right person.
Please send your CV and covering letter in confidence to Ian at [email protected]
Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors are now also Family Law Solicitors in Torquay
The last 18 months has been an exceptional period for Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors.
In this period, we have:
Whilst less visible, we have made changes to our website and to our procedures so that we have improved out transparency about legal pricing/charges and our systems to provide and outstanding service to our clients.
As part of these changes we have incorporated innovative technology into our website to assist new clients to better engage with us and to improve what we are able to provide at initial meeting. We have also introduced a pay as you go and wider fixed fee service.
The final step in this period of growth is the opening of our Torquay Family Law Office on the 03 June 2019.
Our Torquay Family Law Office is conveniently located in Lymington Road, at the Torquay Business Centre.
We selected this as a location because it is easily accessible from all parts of Torquay. Torquay Business Centre is a relatively short distance from Torquay County Court. It is also reasonably convenient for Torbay Council social services meetings at Union House.
We also have the benefit of being able to offer free parking (subject to availability and normally pre-booking) and good disabled access.
Our Torquay solicitors team will be led by Nicole Phare.
Nicole qualified as a specialist family law solicitor in 2005 and specialises in both children law and divorce.
Nicole enjoyed a long career in family law before qualifying as a solicitor and most of her career has been spent working for different practices in Torbay
Nicole will be supported in building our Torquay family law solicitors office by our director Ian Walker and highly experienced solicitors David Howell-Richardson and Sandy Powell.
Both Ian and Sandy have had careers which have included working for South Devon/Torquay practices and between us, we have assisted many Torbay families over the years.
We are conscious that over the years the number of solicitors firms who undertake complex children work in Torquay has significantly reduced.
Before we opened our Torquay solicitors office there were only two firms of solicitors with offices in Torquay which included members of the Law Society Children Panel and which still offer a legally aided service.
By opening an office in Torquay we have taken this number up to 3.
From our Torquay family law solicitors office we will be assisting clients both with children law and divorce.
We are a team of specialist divorce lawyers in Torquay. We will be offering a divorce service from our Torquay family law office.
At Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors we are committed members of the family law solicitors organisation Resolution. Ian Walker is now in his third (three year) term as the elected chair of the Devon region of resolution. Ian is also a member of Resolution’s national Dispute Resolution Committee which promotes innovation and best practice in resolving family Law and divorce cases out of court. He has previously served as both a member of the Law Society Family Law Committee and as a trustee of the Family Mediators Association. One of Ian’s achievements was the introduction of collaborative family law in Devon.
We are committed to assisting our divorce clients to resolve their cases in a principled and fair way which focuses on achieving good outcomes but ensures that the needs of the couple’s children are not lost in (often unnecessary) adult disputes.
If you believe we can assist – please do get in touch.
In six and half years we have grown from nothing to being a leading family law solicitors practice and mediation service in the south-west.
We have achieved our growth through the innovative use of technology. Are use of technology is both client facing and also within the platform through which we work. We make good use of cloud technology. We use other innovative software and we subscribe to the best available family law practice support service.
We now have SRA authorised offices in Honiton, Exeter, Torquay and Weston-super-Mare as well as consulting rooms we access in Yeovil and Bridgwater.
Our team consists of both employed solicitors and fee share consultant’s.
Whilst on the one hand we intend to consolidate the advances we have made over the last 18 months, on the other hand, we are always open to new opportunities.
We are therefore ever open to hear from outstanding family lawyers who might be based in Devon and Somerset slightly further afield who are interested in joining an innovative, collegiate, noncorporate but highly professional and expert team. Our team has grown around its people and being open to new opportunities and if you share our vision and would like to join our journey then we would like to hear from you. (Equity opportunities are available). Join our Family Law Solicitors in Torquay.
On the 11 and 12 October 2018 travelled to Nottingham to attend Resolution’s annual Dispute Resolution Conference. The aim of the conference is to bring to together family law experts in dispute resolution to share their experiences and to discuss and learn about the latest ideas for innovation and promoting best practice.
The Resolution Dispute Resolution Conference is organised by Resolution’s Dispute Resolution Committee, of which I am a member. (Although I hasten to add that I was not on the conference organising subcommittee).
There were around 160 – 180 delegates from all around the country. It is always enjoyable to catch up with friends and colleagues and to meet other like-minded professionals. The majority of the delegates are either mediators, collaborative family lawyers or family arbitrators or like myself all 3 (as well as being practising specialist family law solicitors and barristers).
Amongst the topics discussed were promoting collaborative family law as the normal way of family law practice.
Sadly we are not quite there yet, with collaborative family law being the normal way of family law practice with some lawyers practising within family law still taking a litigious approach which can exacerbate family difficulties – and which is avoidant of the use of family mediation, collaborative family law and arbitration
Other topics included; Innovation in family law/mediation/collaborative law/arbitration; better preparing clients for stressful meetings including by encouraging clients to make use of techniques such as mindfulness and by accessing counselling; working together with complimentary professionals (such as financial advisers and children experts) and integrating working together in different aspects of practice; better assisting families to implement children court orders achieved through court proceedings (often with high conflict) or mediation and assisting couples to better work together in order to avoid returning to court.
The Henry Brown Lecture (named after Henry Brown – Henry is a pioneer of the use of family mediation in the UK and who incidentally trained me as both a family mediator in 1996 and a civil/commercial mediator – Henry is now enjoying his retirement) was given by Amita Sehgal who is a couple psychoanalytic psychotherapist accredited by the British Psychoanalytic Council through the Tavistock Institute of Medical Psychology. This considered the impacts of dealing with stress and anger and steps that could be taken to minimise the negative impacts of these.
The highlight of the conference was undoubtably the keynote address given by Jo Berry and Patrick Magee of Building Bridges for Peace.
Jo Berry is the daughter of Sir Anthony Berry MP who was amongst those killed in the bombing of the Grand Hotel, Brighton by the IRA (Irish Republican Army) on October 12, 1984. Patrick Magee is the man who planted the bomb and who was convicted and sent to prison for that act.
Jo described how within 2 days of her father being killed she resolved to find something positive out of what had happened and to bring meaning to and even understand those who had killed her father.
Jo and Patrick met 16 years later after Patrick was released from prison as part of the Northern Ireland peace process. The charity Building Bridges for Peace was launched in Brighton in October 2009 on the 25th anniversary of the bombing.
Building Bridges for Peace works to enable divided communities and the general public to explore and better understand the roots of war, terrorism and violence. Jo and Patrick promote dialogue and mediation as the means to peace.
Jo Berry and Pat Magee have given talks in Palestine, Lebanon, Rwanda and throughout the UK. There is a quote on the Building Bridges for Peace website http://www.buildingbridgesforpeace.org/ from Terry Waite CBE which is worth repeating;
To be a subject of a grievous wrong is always wounding and painful and can frequently provoke anger.
However, anger, if allowed to fester is like a cancer of the soul. It does more harm to those who hold it than against those whom it is held.
Jo Berry knows from personal experience what it is to have to face deep suffering as her father was blown up in a IRA bomb. She has let go of personal need for revenge and empathised with Patrick Magee, the man responsible for planting the bomb.
To hear her speak alongside the one who killed her father is a living demonstration of the transforming power of reconciliation when two people who have been on different sides truly listen and can see each other’s humanity, an example this sad world so desperately need. Terry Waite CBE – humanitarian and former hostage
It was particularly inspiring to hear Jo and Patrick speak on a day that was in fact the 34th anniversary of the bombing.
Terry Waite’s words encapsulate the importance of the work of Jo and Patrick not only in the theatre of political conflict but also in the theatre of personal conflict.
As family law practitioners we are very often assisting clients who have been wronged and who are angry with their former partner who they feel has caused them that wrong.
The anger and pain is very often a two-way thing. Unresolved anger can play out in making it much harder to reach objectively reasonable outcomes and can be compounded by further anger generated through the process of divorce/separation and having orders/outcomes imposed. A couple’s children can be caught within this conflict and this can be very damaging indeed. This can play out in children being psychologically harmed, losing contact with one parent or family members (sometimes with parental alienation) or not receiving good role modelling to equip them to deal with resolving disputes in their own lives in the best way.
I would strongly recommend that if you ever have the opportunity to listen to Jo and Patrick speak then you should take this up. What they have achieved together, both on a personal level as well as through their wider work is truly inspiring.
The delegates to whom I spoke, all left thinking about how they could better assist their clients through their own personal conflicts.
I left the conference re-energised that as a practice we are clearly on the right track in terms of how we are trying to assist our clients and over the next few months we will be reflecting further upon how we can make improvements to our service and to supporting our team to do this.
I am already looking forward to the 2019 Resolution Dispute Resolution Conference.
Leading Exeter Family Law Solicitor and Exeter Divorce Lawyer David Howell-Richardson joins Ian Walker Family Law And Mediation Solicitors – adding to one of the most experienced teams of family Law solicitors and divorce lawyers in Devon and Somerset
David Howell-Richardson has spent many years assisting clients in Exeter and throughout Devon to achieve good outcomes for their divorce and child related problems.
David Howell Richardson qualified as a solicitor in 1978 and as Head of Family Law and partner at Stones Solicitors, Exeter and then Trowers and Hamlins Solicitors, David will have assisted thousands of clients in Exeter and Devon with his child focused but tenacious approach. David has spent many years as a member of the Law Society Children Panel and on the Law Society Family Mediation Panel.
David Howell-Richardson is well known and well liked in the Exeter and Devon family law community. He is an active member of Resolution, which is leading force in the development of good practice for family solicitors and divorce lawyers. David’s reputation and experience assists him in achieving good outcomes for his clients.
Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors was founded by leading Devon and Somerset family law solicitor and divorce lawyer Ian Walker in 2013. Ian Walker is the long-standing chair of the Devon region of Resolution and is a former member of the Law Society Family Law Committee and a former trustee of the Family Mediators Association.
It is the mission statement of Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors to set standards of excellence in the practice of family Law and mediation. Also, to assist clients to find the best solutions for their family law issues in a way that is child focused, cost effective and as un-traumatic as possible.
An example of the progressive approach of Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors is that the practice has always published its charging rates on their website http://ian-walker-family-law.local/payments-2/these charges are consciously lower than comparable city centre practices. However, if clients are concerned for some reason that the law firms in Exeter charging rates are not high enough, there is an ongoing offer in the firm’s fair charging policy http://ian-walker-family-law.local/payments-2/fair-charging-policy/ to price match a more expensive charging rate and donate the difference to a children’s charity.
Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors has quickly developed one of the most experienced teams of family Law solicitors and divorce lawyers in Devon and Somerset. In addition to Ian Walker and David-Howell Richardson, two of our other family Law solicitors and divorce lawyers have been partners and head of family law and divorce at their previous Devon practices, namely; Kim Stradling (Everys Solicitors) and Sandy Powell (Dunn and Baker Solicitors).
There are currently 7 specialist family Law solicitors and divorce lawyers in the team at Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors, but there are already plans in place which should see this rise to 9 specialist family Law solicitors and divorce lawyers by early 2019. This will make the team one of the largest specialist teams of family Law solicitors and divorce lawyers in Devon and Somerset, assisting clients from its offices and consulting rooms in Exeter, Taunton, Honiton and Yeovil.
The practice has a well-regarded website http://ian-walker-family-law.local/ which includes lots of useful information about family law, child law, divorce, family mediation and family law arbitration. The website includes pages with helpful advice to assist clients to choose their best divorce lawyer http://ian-walker-family-law.local/divorce/best-divorce-lawyer/ and about what to do if social services have concerns about parenting http://ian-walker-family-law.local/what-to-do-if-social-services-have-concerns-about-your-parenting/
David says:
I am delighted to be a member of the family law solicitor and divorce lawyer team at Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors. I have known Ian Walker, Kim Stradling and Sandy Powell for many years and they together with their team are excellent family Law solicitors and divorce lawyers. The philosophy behind the firm is about combining best practice, the good use of technology and reasonable charging. I am very pleased to be part of the team and to continue to assist families in Exeter and Devon.
Ian Walker says:
David Howell-Richardson has fitted easily into our team. We are building a leading family law practice to serve clients throughout Devon and Somerset from our offices and consulting rooms in Exeter, Taunton, Honiton and Yeovil. 2018 has been a year of excellent results and of growth for the practice and I am looking forward to further growth in 2019.
I founded Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors from scratch in 2013. Initially it was just me and a computer.
From 2015 we started to build a team. This now consists of 6 Solicitors and a Legal Executive plus 5 support. By the time we get to 2019 we are expecting to add at least one more Solicitor.
We have an experienced and respected team. Three of the Solicitors in my team have been partners and heads of the family law departments at previous practices. In fact are now one of the most experienced family law teams in Devon and Somerset.
Grown through recommendation and good business planning and by being well connected and respected in our local family law networks.
I am the longstanding chair of the Devon Region of the family solicitors organisation Resolution. I am also a past member of the Law Society Family Law Committee.
Following a mid year review of our organisation, we have identified the need for a new member in our support team…
We are recruiting an administration assistant/legal assistant/paralegal/Legal PA who will be responsible for;
We don’t have traditional secretaries, so there is no audio typing.
Most importantly we are looking for someone who will fit into the team, who is hardworking and self-motivated with a good sense of humour.
The successful candidate will have/be most of the following:
Please email your CV and covering letter to me at [email protected]
We are celebrated the 5th Birthday of Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors on Friday with a small drinks reception at East Devon Business Centre in Honiton.
It was so nice to catch up with some old friends who have supported us with our journey.
We enjoyed a selection of lovely cakes and a glass of fizz.
I was reminded it was Groundhog Day. Having enjoyed the movie, I was very relieved not to wake up the next day and find myself back at day one; in a room all by myself, armed with a computer, legal expertise and some good ideas.
And what a five years it has been. My first business plan anticipated that I might have had a couple of colleagues by this point. Instead I have been lucky enough to be joined by (in order of joining) Karen Elliott, Carrie Meikle, Kim Stradling and Stef Hinde.
On Friday we bade temporary goodbye to Stef who is now on maternity leave, but I was delighted to announce that we will be joined by the very experienced and respected Sandy Powell.
Sandy deserves a separate post and that will follow shortly.
We will also be joined (as a consultant) by former CAFCASS Officer/Children’s Guardian/Independent Social Worker and trainer; Julie Cornwell.
Julie is going to assist our Mediation practice by assisting in taking children’s wishes to assist the mediation process. Julie will do the same in support of my Child Law Arbitration practice. More to follow.
Since we started we have gained our own office at Exchange House in Taunton, and most recently at the Senate, Southernhay Gardens, Exeter.
We have spent the last few weeks getting our office in the Senate ready.
Our main base will remain in Honiton.
We also have some more new faces in the pipeline.
Sadly Beth and Hannah have left us for personal reasons, but this has allowed us to revamp and expand the backroom team. More news to follow, but it is all very exciting.
We also hope to expand our legal team further during the next year, but I cant talk about that yet…
Thanks so much to my team, and to our clients and to all those who have helped us along the way.
Here’s to another 5 years
2017 was a really good year for Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors, but 2018 promises to be even better. Below is what I can tell you about our plans for 2018, but first, the highlights of 2017 (in no particular order):
Thanks to all who have helped us get this far. I am looking forward to 2018
In 2017 the family Family Solicitors organisation, Resolution published a briefing paper on the future of family law called : Law and Justice briefing ; The current landscape and direction of travel
Here is a link to the paper: http://www.resolution.org.uk/editorial.asp?page_id=1292 but it is in the members only section.
For those who don’t know, I have been a member of Resolution for over 20 years and I am the longstanding Chair of the Devon Region. I am also a member of the national Dispute Resolution Committee.
The paper was written by my old friend Angela Lake-Carroll who I first met nearly 20 years ago when I was one of a handful of solicitors invited by the Legal Aid Agency to participate in their FAINS: Family Advice and Information Networks project. Angela is well respected in the family law community and also a member of the Dispute Resolution Committee.
In summary, the paper analyses the market for the demand for and the delivery of family law (and mediation) services and discusses threats and opportunities.
Threats will include:
(more…)
We know that Christmas is not a happy time that everyone. Indeed it can be very lonely and depressing. Some parents are for various reasons unable to spend time with their children on the main days of the Christmas holiday or even at all.
In the run-up to Christmas we deal with a surge in cases where separated parents are in dispute over the arrangements through which children will spend time with each parent over the Christmas holiday. Here are some hopefully helpful thoughts.
Children don’t want to see the adults around them arguing. Children want to enjoy everything that is going on. They will quite naturally want to see all of the important adults in their lives if possible. If they are taking part in a school play or similar performance children will normally want this to be watched by their important family members. Most importantly of all (again) children do not want to witness arguments; children wants to have fun and be happy.
If it has not been possible to agree arrangements for children to spend time with the adults who they do not live with during the year, then it is unlikely that there are going to be any significant changes agreed for the Christmas period. Equally, if the amount of time that the non-resident parent spends with their child is quite limited, then it is unlikely that it is going to be agreed that they can have loads ofadditional time over the Christmas holiday. Anyadditional time that can be agreed is likely to be along the lines of what is already taking place. Asking for more than is realistic will probably be counter-productive and will only lead to arguments.
If separated parents cannot get on with each other normally, then it is unrealistic to expect significant change over Christmas. Moving between one parent and another can be very stressful for children as well as for their parents. Sometimes the situation can be improved if a family member or friend can on a regular or even specific occasionassist with the move between one parent and the other.
The best time to discuss the arrangements for Christmas is in the spring of the year before. This allows ample time to undertake mediation. If agreements cannot be reached then an application would need to be made to the Court. Securing court time is not always easy and if there is a dispute over the Christmas arrangements, if an application is made to the court in the middle of December it is unlikely that the case will be able to get before a Judge in such a way that decisions can properly be made. The later a court application is left before Christmas, the less likely it is that a satisfactory outcome will be achieved
Courts make decisions based upon evidence. If an agreement has been reached between parents and it can be proven that an agreement existed then the starting point of the Court is likely to be based upon making the parents keep to their agreements (unless there is a good reason for change)rather than starting completely from scratch
Some parents sadly do not see their children or have their time with their children restricted because there are issues about safety. Examples of this can be where there has been domestic abuse or even abusive or unsafe behaviour involving the children. Sometimes the parent with whom the child lives places the question of safety to one side in order to try to be nice to the other for Christmas or because they want to give their children what they think their children want. Risks are unlikely to diminish simply because it is Christmas and if a parent places themselves or their children in an unsafe situation then they could be unfortunate consequences both with some problem arising and also with the possibility that social services could become involved with the family because of concerns over a parents failure to protect.
The best arrangements for children are ones where their parents are able to communicate well with each other and where both parents have confidence that the other will deliver their side of the agreement. The best arrangements are where parents are able to trust each other. Unless there is a significant safety issue the best way to achieve the best arrangements is through the parents talking to each other and finding a way to put past difficulties behind them. Mediation can be an excellent forum for achieving this. The starting point to a successful mediation is both parents accepting that there is a problem that needs to be resolved and both wishing to do something to resolve the problem.
Where advice is required it is always a good idea to do this as soon as it becomes clear that the problem will not easily be solved. In our experience problems do not easily go away if nothing is done to try and solve them. Reasonable arrangements for children over the Christmas period often include Christmas Day being shared or children spending Christmas with one family one year and with another the next. However, all situations are different. Getting specific legal advice is usually a good idea.
We are a Firm of Solicitors specialising in family law and a mediation service that is based in Honiton in East Devon. We also have branch offices in Taunton. Our mediation service is contracted with the legal aid agency to offer legally aided mediation in Honiton Exeter and Taunton. If you qualify for legal aid for mediation then the mediation will be free of charge.We are members of the family solicitors organisation Resolution. Ian Walker is currently the elected chair of the Devon region Of Resolution
On Monday 30 October our specialist team family lawyers was further strengthened by new addition Stephanie Hinde who joins us as a consultant solicitor.
Stephanie joins us from Somerset firm Pardoes, with whom she trained. Stephanie was previously based at their offices in Taunton and Bridgwater.
Stephanie has a strong academic background. Before gaining a good LLB English and French Laws with French Language degree at the University of Liverpool, Stephanie was educated at Bridgewater College and Haygrove School, Bridgwater. Her degree involved spending a year Universite Paris I Pantheon-Sorbonne, Paris, France. Not surprisingly Stephanie is a fluent French speaker.
After university gained a commendation for her Legal Practice Course before undertaking her solicitors training contract with Pardoes.
Stephanie chose to specialise in family law after qualification and her particular expertise is in representing clients in divorce proceedings with particular interest in representing teachers. Having previously undertaken voluntary work in a classroom assistant role at Penrose Special Needs School in Bridgwater and having at one point considered teaching as an alternative career path, Stephanie has particular insight into the additional demands and stresses upon teachers at times of relationship breakdown.
To the same end, Stephanie has gained an understanding of the stresses upon parents whose children have special needs and the additional problems this can lead to when arranging fair child arrangements – which are focused upon the unique needs of the child – which can be lost sight of in times of parental dispute.
We are very pleased that Stephanie has chosen to join us. Her patient and methodical team working and commitment to the Resolution way of working should allow her to fit comfortably into our team.
At Ian Walker Family Law and Mediation Solicitors we work as a team and with our recruitment policy and procedures we endeavoured to recruit new team members who will be another essential part of our team jigsaw.
Stephanie joining us means that our team now consists of 4 specialist solicitors (Ian, Kim, Carrie and Stef) together with chartered legal executive Karen.
This means we have 5 specialist family lawyers who are very ably supported by our paralegal/trainee solicitor Hannah and client care manager Beth. This means that we are now one of the larger family law teams in Devon and Somerset, and we have room for more growth yet.
Stephanie will be meeting clients in both Honiton and Taunton.
To arrange a meeting call our administration number 03339390188 or either: 01404 819098 or 01823 429183
