Care Proceedings

Linenhall Chambers specialist team of family barristers have a leading reputation in family care work across North Wales, the North West and the Midlands.

The team accepts instructions from all parties and is also highly sought after by individual clients, both through instructing solicitors and on a direct access basis, and they represent children, parents, grandparents, guardians, carers and extended family members in care proceedings.

The style of the team is one of accessibility with direct contact readily available for solicitors, local authorities and lay clients and our barristers build close, trust based relationships with their clients to enable cases to run as smoothly as possible in what can often be highly emotive and often very complex cases.

Our barristers combine their technical legal expertise with a deep understanding of the processes involved in care proceedings. They utilise their working knowledge of acting for both applicants and respondents as well as public authorities in such cases as well as providing exemplary client care to achieve the best possible outcome for clients. The team has specialist extensive experience of Welsh legislation governing care proceedings in Wales. A number of the team are Welsh speakers and are able to conduct cases in Welsh.

The mix of work undertaken by the team means they have a well-rounded outlook and are able to understand aspects of the case from all perspectives, communicate effectively and therefore are better able to reach appropriate conclusions for all parties. The team understand the highly emotive nature of care proceedings and the best interests of the child or children are always put first in disputes over child welfare.

Members of the Linenhall Chambers family team have been involved in some of the most serious care cases, often involving death and complex injury, neglect and abuse and the team is well known for their expert handling of complicated, and sometimes conflicting, medical evidence as well as their excellent ability to interact, co-operate and work with individuals from varied backgrounds and experiences in the course of care proceedings.

Many of the team have extensive experience of adoption proceedings both within and outside care proceedings. Our sensitive and caring barristers are adept at working with children and clients with additional needs, and the team has a particular strength in care cases involving vulnerable individuals.

Our level of expertise is also reflected in the fact that, some members of the Linenhall family team are appointed as Deputy District Judges and Recorders, approved to hear Public and Private Law children cases.