A good many of the couples who separate in Portsmouth were never married, and the law treats them very differently from the divorcing. The common-law spouse is a myth: a partner whose name is not on the deeds of the terrace in Fratton has no claim to it unless they can prove a trust, there is no maintenance for the partner, and the pension stays with the person who earned it. Family law solicitors in Portsmouth spend a surprising amount of time on these cases, and on the cohabitation agreements and declarations of trust that would have avoided them.
Children's arrangements are the biggest part of the work. Parents are expected to try mediation after a mediation information and assessment meeting; those who cannot agree apply to the family court at Portsmouth Combined Court Centre on Winston Churchill Avenue, where Cafcass reports on the child's welfare before a judge decides where the child lives and how time is shared. Naval deployments complicate everything: an order that works while a parent is on shore duty collapses when the ship sails for seven months, so Portsmouth solicitors draft arrangements with deployment clauses and remote contact built in, and handle the relocation applications that follow a posting to Scotland or abroad.
Domestic abuse cases are urgent and frequent. Non-molestation and occupation orders come through within days where there is abuse, with legal aid for the applicant. Care proceedings brought by Portsmouth City Council carry automatic legal aid for the parents, who should instruct a children panel solicitor. Grandparents in Gosport or Hayling who have lost contact can apply too, with the court's permission.
A free or fixed-fee first meeting is standard in Portsmouth, with hourly rates thereafter.
Family law firms serving Portsmouth are listed below, verified firms first. Read what family law covers, the general family law solicitors guide and the divorce process, or see divorce solicitors in Portsmouth for the marriage itself.
