A letter from Salford City Council's children's services inviting a parent to a "pre-proceedings meeting" is one of the most frightening things that can come through a door, and one of the few that brings free legal help with it. Parents at that stage, and in any care proceedings that follow, qualify for legal aid regardless of income, and the solicitor who attends the meeting can often keep the case out of court altogether. Family law solicitors in Salford see more of this work than their counterparts in wealthier boroughs.
Parents who cannot agree where a child lives or how school holidays are divided must usually attend a mediation information and assessment meeting before applying to the family court, which for Salford means the Manchester Civil Justice Centre, with Cafcass reporting on the child's welfare. Grandparents in Swinton or Walkden who have lost contact, or who have stepped in to raise a grandchild and need a special guardianship order, are regular clients. So are parents worried that the other will take a child to Ireland, Pakistan or Poland without agreement.
Where there is domestic abuse, a non-molestation or occupation order can be obtained within days, often without the abuser knowing until it is served, and legal aid is available for it. Unmarried couples who bought a house in Eccles together learn that the law gives them only what the deeds and their contributions show, so a declaration of trust at purchase is worth far more than it costs. Prenuptial agreements come mostly from second marriages and from families with businesses to protect.
Most Salford family solicitors offer a free or fixed-fee first meeting; contested hearings are charged by the hour.
The family law firms serving Salford are listed below, verified ones first. Read what family law covers, the general family law solicitors guide and the divorce solicitors in Salford page; firms over the river appear under family law solicitors in Manchester.
