Ten years together, a house in New Malden in one name, two children, and no wedding: when that relationship ends, the partner whose name is not on the deeds discovers that family law offers them very little. There is no common-law marriage. Claims about the house are made under trusts law and turn on who paid for what and what was promised; claims for the children come under a separate scheme that covers their housing and maintenance but nothing for the parent once they are grown. Family law solicitors in Kingston upon Thames explain this to unmarried clients every week, and to couples buying together they recommend a declaration of trust and a cohabitation agreement before completion, not after.
Married or not, parents who separate have to settle where the children live and when they see each parent, and a mediation information and assessment meeting is the required first step for most who cannot agree. The borough's affluence brings international families, relocation applications and prenuptial agreements for second marriages in Coombe and Kingston Hill; its ordinary suburbs bring the same school-run and holiday disputes as anywhere. Children's services for Kingston are run jointly with Richmond through a company called Achieving for Children, and parents facing care proceedings from it have legal aid regardless of means. Domestic abuse injunctions can be obtained within days, with legal aid available.
Contested cases are heard at the family court serving the area, with Cafcass reporting on the children's welfare; arbitration and private hearings are increasingly used by couples who can afford to skip the queue.
Most Kingston family solicitors offer a fixed-fee first meeting, fixed fees for agreements and hourly rates for contested work.
The family law firms nearest Kingston upon Thames appear below, verified firms first. The explainer on family law and the family law solicitors page give the background; divorce solicitors in Kingston upon Thames deals with the divorce itself, and the family law solicitors in London page describes the capital's courts.
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