Private Law Children - Coram Chambers

Coram is dedicated to achieving positive outcomes for our clients when it matters most.

Coram is a recognised leader in all aspects of family law. Our private children law barristers are skilled at guiding clients through a wide range of disputes, including child living arrangements, contact disputes, serious allegations of abuse, schooling, education, permanent moves abroad, adoption, and surrogacy. We can also help with complex jurisdictional disputes and applications under the Family Law Act 1996. We have legal specialists at all levels of seniority (including King’s Counsel), with an unparalleled depth and breadth of experience.

For more information on our members or to discuss a particular case, please contact our clerking team.

Our approach

Our barristers can provide written advice, or advice in direct meetings with clients or representation and advocacy in court and in arbitrations. We also regularly support clients engaged in mediation and settlement conferences. We can host these events in our Central London chambers (two minutes from the Central Family Court), where we have private and comfortable conferencing facilities. We have qualified IFLA arbitrators able to undertake arbitrations on children matters.

Areas of expertise

The separation of parents can affect all aspects of parenting. Our private children law barristers are skilled at guiding clients in a range of legal matters, including:

Child arrangements orders covering ‘lives with; and ‘spends time with’ arrangements
Specific issue orders relating to names, education, religion, school, and other aspects of parental responsibility
Prohibited steps orders
International and internal relocations
Parental alienation and intractable hostility
Cases involving fact finding, with serious allegations of domestic abuse including serious physical and sexual violence, coercive control, and economic abuse
Enforcement of orders relating to child arrangements
Disputes which have significant local authority involvement, drawing from our extensive experience in public children law matters
Instruction of r.16.4 guardians representing the views of children in proceedings
Cases which involve complex jurisdictional issues including those under Brussels II revised and the 1996 Hague Convention
Family Law Act 1996 applications including non-molestation orders and occupation orders.

Additional services

Coram provides a full and bespoke out of court Dispute Resolution service which utilises the expert skills of our family barristers as mediators, arbitrators and through neutral evaluation (private FDR hearings). The expertise of several of our members is recognised by the most prominent directories, Chambers & Partners and The Legal 500.