Jones Myers team

Our highly experienced team at Jones Myers has opened a new office at Windsor House, Cornwall Road in Harrogate as we mark our 25-year anniversary.

The milestone for our specialist family law firm, which operates out of Leeds and London, is to accommodate an increase in instructions from our clients in North Yorkshire.

The move has been widely featured across print and broadcast media including The Yorkshire Post, The BusinessDesk, BusinessLink, Bdaily, the Harrogate Advertiser and Stray FM.

2017 has been a formative year for our practice, which was founded in Leeds by Peter Jones – one of the country’s leading family lawyers and a former national chairman of Resolution.

We are consistently ranked in a joint Top Tier position by the Legal 500 and Chambers guides for Leeds, West Yorkshire and North Yorkshire.

Chambers 2018 describes us as, “A very strong firm – not just in finance but also in children cases.” It adds, “Expertise in dealing with financial remedy nuptial cases adds depth to their practice.”

The latest edition of the highly respected Legal 500 guide describes Jones Myers as “a family practice that is one of the best in the area” and attracts praise for our “sensible, expert, conciliatory advice that does what it says on the tin.”

Our clients are based regionally, nationally and internationally, and we have earned an enviable reputation working exclusively in divorce, separation, complex financial disputes, children issues and contested wills and estates.

Our team of experts, which include a Deputy District Judge, an experienced mediator, a family law arbitrator and our own in-house barrister, jointly combine 250 years of legal experience.

Our move to Harrogate follows the recent expansion of our highly respected children’s department who are regarded as leading experts in issues of residence, contact, relocation, child protection and international child abduction.

Peter Jones said: “The services we provide at our Harrogate office complement those at our Leeds and London locations. We are proud to be recognised as lawyers who look for solutions to problems and are acknowledged for supporting families and children. We advise and guide where possible on options which can avoid conflict and unnecessary costs.

“A big ‘thank you’ to our valued and talented team in what is a momentous year for the firm.”

For more information about any aspect of divorce or family law, call Jones Myers at our Leeds office on 0113 246 0055, our Harrogate office on 01423 276104, visit jm2023.jonesmyers.co.uk, email info@jonesmyers.co.uk or tweet us @helpwithdivorce

The post Why our expansion to Harrogate has made a media splash!   appeared first on Jones Myers.

Contrary to perception that ‘common law marriage’ is a legal entity, the harsh reality is that if the couple splits, one party could be left penniless and homeless.

In many areas of life from buying a car to safeguard our health, property and even our pets we take out insurance to cover worst case scenarios. So why when it comes to cohabitation – now the fastest growing family type in the UK – do we leave ourselves vulnerable and exposed?

While increasing numbers of couples are signing pre-nuptial arrangements before they marry, people planning to cohabit are often unaware that they could protect themselves with a similar agreement.

It may not be romantic to agree the ‘what if’ scenarios should one partner leave, win the lottery – or die. However, putting in place safeguards in the form of a cohabitation agreement before the furniture is unpacked or even after it can potentially save emotional and financial trauma at a later stage.

If you are among the six million cohabitees in the UK we recommend that you sit down with your partner and consider the following ten key questions:

• How long do you want the agreement to last
• Who has contributed what?
• Who owns what?
• How will monthly outgoings be met?
• What happens if you separate?
• How do you ensure that your children, including any from a previous relationship, are protected financially and otherwise in the event of your death?
• Should a property be bought in joint names and if so in what shares will the ownership be?
• What happens to that property if one of you dies?
• Can the survivor stay in that property forever, or at all?
• When do your children receive your part of the property as their inheritance?

Your answers will be instrumental in formulating a cohabitation agreement with legal and financial advisors. It is important that each party seeks independent legal advice and discloses all financial information in the lead up to signing the agreement, which should be reviewed regularly – particularly as personal circumstances change.

While a cohabitation agreement may not be 100 per cent enforceable, embarking on this arrangement – often achieved through “round-table” meetings within the collaborative process – can reduce the likelihood of cohabitees being left destitute should the relationship flounder.

Jones Myers LLP can help if you or someone you know is about to cohabit. We have considerable experience in drafting cohabitation agreements and, sadly, in dealing with disputes arising from separations where there has been no such agreement.

The post Considering cohabitation? Ten key questions to ask yourself appeared first on Jones Myers.