Ask the experts

Our special family law supplement looks at ways in which lawyers can help you

Family law covers a wide range of situations which can crop up in our lives at any time. Some of the areas covered include:

Marriage, civil partnership and cohabitation Situations arising when a relationship ends Relationships between parents and children Inheritance and succession Gender recognition. For many people, the first contact they might need to have with a family lawyer comes with the break-up of a relationship. This can be a difficult time during which hard decisions have to be made, especially when children are involved.

It is extremely important, therefore, to seek professional advice – even if you are only considering a divorce or separation. Often, talking the situation through with a solicitor who has experience of helping couples deal with divorce and separation can help to ease the stress.

Getting a divorce requires a court order and evidence that the marriage has broken down irretrievably. This could include non-cohabitation for a certain period of time, adultery or unreasonable behaviour. When it comes to civil partnerships, the termination of this relationship is called a dissolution and follows a similar process to divorce.

Couples who live together but are not married or in a civil partnership may also have certain rights and it may be necessary to use the court process if you cannot reach agreement on the division of property acquired while living together, for example.

A newer approach to managing the end of a relationship is called collaborative law. This could be of value if you would prefer not to hand over decisions such as child care and finances to the court.

The aim of collaborative law is to foster a positive relationship between parties for the future. Both parties can instruct independent solicitors to help settle matters, an approach which can be particularly helpful if you are trying to achieve agreement on co-parenting and want to maintain an amicable relationship in the years to come.

Another process which couples can use to negotiate a settlement when a relationship has ended is mediation. To enter into mediation both parties have to be prepared to take part – one person cannot be forced to enter the process.

Many lawyers are trained in mediation and can offer legal advice to help you come to a productive solution.

Try the Law Society of Scotland’s solicitor search: https://www.lawscot.org.uk/find-asolicitor/ to find a solicitor who specialises in the area of family law.