By Today's Family Lawyer
The podcast currently has 38 episodes available.
Joining the latest Today's Family Lawyer Podcast is Dan Temple, an expert in acknowledging and understanding the human impact of working, and managing employees and businesses. The discussion centres on creating effective and high performing teams, and what steps law firms can, and should, be taking to enable this in their business.
Dan leads Cobalt Human Solutions, a training consultancy which focuses on creating effective teams, drawn from his own experiences in the Royal Air Force as part of the Chinook helicopter crew.
The podcast discusses how creating high performing teams requires a number of key elements. Dan describes how trust and accountability are paramount.
Ultimately, says Dan, the environment and culture of the workplace is where the success and failure of organisations is derived. He suggests that one of the key failings he identifies in many businesses is a blame culture; the inability of staff to be open, honest and appropriately challenge - what Dan describes as a "just culture." Staff are fearful of doing something wrong, rather than challenging management.
As well as root cause analysis, Dan encourages organisations to conduct "pre-mortems" - the idea being that you spend time identifying potential pitfalls in a plan and anticipate how you might deal with them should they arise.
And if you ever wanted to understand how the difference between egg mayonnaise and aircraft is relevant to leadership and management, listen in to this insightful and entertaining discussion.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
Pre-nups, post-nups, separation agreements and cohabitation agreements are all part of the discussion on the latest Today's Family Lawyer podcast with Kathryn Cassells of Vaitilingam Kay Solicitors as we deep dive into this increasingly popular world.
As Kathryn quite rightly points out of course, nuptial agreements are not binding contracts in England and Wales and therefore the courts retain the discretion to impose an alternative outcome if it deems it to be more appropriate.
So why could/should we be encouraging our clients to draw up nuptial agreements?
In the first instance, although there is still judicial discretion, where agreements are presented to the courts, there is an increasingly acceptance of their inclusions with Kathyrn citing the Supreme Court decision of Rachmacher v Granatino, which outlined four key points of practice to note
Needs, as Kathryn reminds us, is an elastic concept and therefore any agreement should account for the financial needs of the parties over the full duration of marriage, not just at the point of entering the agreement.
Other things that should be considered are issues around coercion, especially with the increasingly prevalent risk of domestic abuse and coercive and controlling behaviours; and drafting the nuptial agreement in such a way that it can flex with changing family circumstances and finances.
Ultimately says Kathryn, there is a misconception nuptial agreements are for footballers and the rich and famous and the reality is they are not.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
Victoria Cannon joins the latest Today's Family Lawyer podcast to discuss her experiences of launching, running and ultimately exiting her family law practice. With a relatively unique journey into the profession, Victoria brings a range of life and personal experiences to her role now, as Head of the Family Team at Hugh James.
She talks about her decision to focus on family law and the challenges of setting up her own firm... the discussion covers regulatory and compliance, professional indemnity insurance, managing staff, business development, and much more.
Victoria explores the period of upheaval in legal services during which the introduction of the Legal Services Act and the associated deregulation of legal businesses had an impact; as did successive governments' falling investment in Legal Aid.
The discussion moves on to the importance of having senior leaders in the business who understand management and have business acumen; as lawyers we're not trained to be business people says Victoria, so we must learn it as part of our ongoing development.
And the podcast finishes with Victoria explaining how she began the process of deciding she was going to sell her firm in 2022 and what steps she took as part of that succession planning process.
What is clear throughout the discussion is Victoria's passions for the law and family legal services... but would she do it all again if she had the opportunity now... you'll have to listen in to find out!
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has recently requested law firms complete an anti-money laundering and sanctions data collection exercise. The SRA is required by Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision (OPBAS) to take a risk-based approach to supervision and is requesting firms complete the requested information as full as possible.
It will, they say enable them to "see the distribution of risk across the legal profession, which in turn informs our programme of inspections and our guidance."
The latest Today's Family Lawyer podcast welcomes Gavin Ball of HiveRisk to tackle the tricky topic of what firms need to be thinking about when it comes to completing the information, and wider considerations when it comes to firms' anti-money laundering policies, processes and procedures.
In 2024 alone law firms have been fine £200,000 directly relating to failures in their anti-money laundering and sanctions processes.
Gavin goes on to discuss the areas he sees firms failing on as a compliance specialist. He talks technology and how it can help firms with their compliance obligations but warns the key is understanding what the information is telling you... in their audits the SRA will challenge firms and staff to interpret reports provided through technology and how to interpret its content.
Gavin also discusses politically exposed persons (PEPs), sanctions, and how to deal with reporting suspicious activity (SARs) to the National Crime Agency (NCA) in this informative and insightful podcast.
The deadline for firms to complete the SRA form is by 13.00 on 23 September 2024.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
Caroline Glass is private domestic abuse advisor having worked extensively throughout her career with those impacted by domestci abuse. She had been part of the charity Refuge and was also an Independent Domestic Abuse Advisor (IDVA) in Lambeth.
She has since decided to become a private advisor and joins the latest Today's Family Lawyer Podcast to discuss her work and the way she works with family lawyers to provide a more holistic support network for clients.
Her starting point is always a detailed risk assessment, similar to those completed by IDVAs but as a private assessor Caroline says you can invest much more time into the client. As an IDVA you may have 30 clients at any one time; reducing the impact you can have as a professional. Whereas her caseload enables her to work with people in a more in-depth way.
Once the risk assessment is done she works with family practitioners to explore and understand options and rights; be they non-molestation orders, occupation orders, prohibited steps orders, housing rights, marital right, social service intervention etc. She sees her role as extending the knowledge a solicitor can provide.
Caroline also suggests she can have a role to play in helping firms understand and identify where domestic abuse and coercive control is happening, and educates many on the increasingly varied form it can take. She points to the rise of technological abuse as a growing concern; with the use of spyware to monitor phones and computers; home devices like Alexa and Ring doorbells as tools that can be used to monitor partners; and car tracking tools so perpetrators know where their victims go.
She also warns of the growing understanding and use of the language of domestic abuse and control being used by perpetrators to portray themselves as victims.
Caroline delivers a fascinating insight into her role and provides some really useful points for practitioners to consider in their day to day roles.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
Reporting Manager at Lextox Donna Muldoon joins host David Opie in the latest Today's Family Lawyer Podcast to discuss the practicalities of drug and alcohol testing on hair samples. If you ever wanted to understand how the drug and alcohol tests family practitioners instruct happen, this is the podcast to listen to.
At the outset of the discussion Donna explains how the process works; from instruction, through to collection and testing. She describes the process as like a tape recorder; hair can provide a useful history of drug and alcohol usage over time.
Donna explains some of the opportunities and pitfalls presented by drug and alcohol testing and the value they can add to court proceedings. She explains what can impact results; from physical factors like the cyclical nature of hair growth, to environmental factors like the way in which the drugs are taken.
At each stage, she adds, thorough checks are undertaken to ensure the results are legally defensible. It is also the responsibility of the drug and alcohol testing companies to help family lawyers and the courts understand the results, with Donna keen to stress they simply present evidence to the court. They are not there to provide commentary on the suitability of an individual to be a parent for example, that is for the courts to decide.
Drug and alcohol testing is not a silver bullet and Donna provides an excellent overview of the process for practitioners.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
Lisa Payne is an Associate at Wilsons Solicitors and joins the latest Today's Family Lawyer podcast to discuss 'Resolution Together.' Also know as one lawyer, two clients, Wilsons have introduced the service in their firm with Lisa taking a leading role in championing it amongst the team and clients.
In this podcast Lisa discusses the impact it is having on her clients and her own family law practice., describing how the concept requires a mindset change from traditional family law in identifying and working with both clients to achieve a mutually beneficial outcome; rather than acting for one side only.
She also highlights the importance of introducing expertise around the matter as well, pointing to the role of divorce coaches, pensions experts, family therapists, counsel and others in supporting the practitioner, and clients, through the process.
You're actually doing your clients a disservice if you don't identify and point clients in the direction of further support says Lisa, encouraging practitioners to take a more holistic approach. Resolution Together is also more cost effective, and time saving as both parties hear what the advice from the experts is first hand jointly.
The response from clients, says Lisa, has been positive, suggesting the process is an organic move forward in the wake of the seismic changes brought about by no fault divorce.. rather than starting from a position of acrimony, couples have the option to divorce together, and importantly sort finances together at the same time.
That's not to say that Lisa still feels a responsibility to point clients in the direction of independent legal advice where needed; or that Resolution Together is the right route for everyone. Indeed some start down the path before seeking separate representation.
But for Wilsons, family law is changing and this has prompted the decision to introduce the service which saw Lisa complete 40-50 hours of training on the practicalities of the process, as well as additional considerations around safeguarding and domestic abuse; where there is a risk of coercion and control.
Listen in to hear Lisa's experience and insight into 'Resolution Together. '
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
Never talk about politics or religion... while the latest Today's Family Lawyer podcast swerves the first, it tackles the second in a fascinating discussion with RWK Goodman's Clizia Motterle and Farzana Iqbal.
Divorce is a legal process not a religious one; however practitioners should be au fait with the cultural and religious background and diversity that is associated with divorce.
Religious divorce sits alongside civil divorce and will understandably vary depending on the religion in question, and even, says Clitzia, within different denominations. In the Church of England, for example, a civil process is sufficient to be considered divorced; whereas the Catholic Church doesn't recognise divorce, and instead should someone wish to remarry, they require a decree of annulment, proving the first marriage wasn't valid in the first place.
Both Clizia and Farzana explain they feel their own faith journey helps them with understanding and empathising with clients; enabling them to ask the right questions and understand the impact of the divorce on the couple and their wider community.
Both also discuss the tricky reconciliation in the inconsistencies between religious doctrine, and the law and how they tackle those; relating them to some of the work being done around out of court dispute resolution; the Islamic faith for example encourages mediation and reconciliation between couples.
Clizia and Farzana navigate a tricky subject expertly, providing insight into civil, cultural and religious considerations when couples separate.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
A sometimes overlooked and undervalued element of divorce proceedings is dealing with pensions which can have significant repercussions for those divorcing and places family practitioners in an important position of ensuring that both parties are adequately provided for both now and in the future.
To discuss this thorny issue, Natalie Lester, a partner in the family team at Debenhams Ottaway, joins podcast host David Opie to discuss some of her experience and strategies for supporting those going through divorce and specifically around dealing with pensions.
What is clear is the need for clients to fully understand their position. A pension might not be considered a tangible asset but is often worth more than the family home. In the case of divorce it's important therefore to ensure it is included in future financial planning to provide both parties with enough capital for their now and future needs; taking into account tax consequences and health planning.
Natalie shares her insight into what options are available to practitioners and the courts, including pension sharing orders and any understanding of the need to offset assets; and pension attachment or earmarking orders.
She also raises the issue of advising clients where one party might be more financially savvy than the other and not understanding the repercussions of waiving rights to pensions, particularly if those involved are in significant emotional turmoil.
This insightful and interesting discussion explores the options around advising clients on pensions when divorcing, drawing on Natalie's experience in practice.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
In this specially recorded podcast, the Today's Family Lawyer podcast joins forces with its sister podcasts from the Today's Conveyancer and Today's Wills and Probate online news publications to discuss the topic of mental health and wellbeing ahead of Mental Health Awareness Week, from 13th May 2024.
Podcast host David Opie welcomes Rayden Solicitors' Legal Director Marc Etherington, alongside Michael Culver (Culver Law) and Laura Burkinshaw (Convey Law) to discuss the mental health and wellbeing of those working across family law, private client, and residential conveyancing. The three guests identify some shared, and unique, challenges they face in their own roles, and discuss their own experiences of dealing with their mental health and wellbeing.
What is clear from the discussion is that legal services is taking mental health and wellbeing much more seriously than it ever has; with firms taking a more proactive approach to support for staff.
The podcast moves on to explore a range of skills and tools we can employ in our own mental health and wellbeing journeys to cope with the stresses and strains of modern legal life; with some fantastic ideas shared to help people exercise their bodies and minds, cope and deal with their roles, and get into what is described as their "flow state"; the experience of being so absorbed by an engaging, enjoyable task that your attention is completely held by it.
The podcast is being published as part of Mental Health Awareness Week 2024.
The Today's Family Lawyer podcast is available on your preferred podcast provider and at www.todaysfamilylawyer.co.uk.
Subscribe to Today's Family Lawyer to receive our FREE weekly newsletter, out every Thursday and listen in to the podcast to hear all the latest news and views from across the family law sector.
The podcast currently has 38 episodes available.
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