The 2022 edition of the Spear’s Family Law Index includes a number of new editions – and some notable promotions too…
The only name to move from Top Recommended to Top Flight this year, Camilla Baldwin’s influence in family law grows stronger all the time. As well as continuing to provide exceptional service to clients (including royalty and a range of UHNWs) at her own firm in Mayfair, Baldwin is founder and trustee at Not Beyond Redemption, offering support to imprisoned mothers and their families. As a company, Camilla Baldwin puts special emphasis on pro bono work in domestic violence cases, putting truly world-class legal talent to use in aid of the most disadvantaged members of society.
Often interviewed in the press on social justice as well as HNW family law issues, Camilla Baldwin is a highly respected legal voice and a force for change. We are proud to welcome her to our Top Flight.
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Zoë Bloom has been a fixture of the Spear’s Family Law Index for some years, thanks to her excellent work at Keystone Law, but she has now established her own firm with long-time collaborator Hannah Budd. They promise to be a clear, fresh, strategic voice in divorce that will guide and empower less confident clients, while also acting decisively for those who are more used to talking to lawyers.
Bloom recently told Spear’s deputy editor Chris Hawes that her firm is taking a fresh approach to the way it bills clients.
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A new appearance on our family law barristers list, Deepak Nagpal, of 1 Kings Bench Walk, is a giant of his specialism. He frequently represents clients where billions of pounds are in the balance and speaks on points of law that turn the result of scores of cases to follow. He has recently addressed the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, and is the only family law silk to sit on the Lord Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Private International Law.
Published in Family Law Week and WealthBriefing, and freshly named as the next chair of Resolution’s Pensions Tax and Financial Remedies committee, Jo Carr-West is an influential voice at a time when mediation and collaborative methods are becoming ever more important in family law. She makes the move from Recommended to Top Recommended in our rankings.
Also moving to Top Recommended is Pauline Fowler, one of the founding partners of leading firm Hughes Fowler Carruthers. A year of high-profile cases for extremely wealthy clients including billionaires and celebrities, and several recommendations from well-respected peers, was more than enough to convince the Spear’s Research Unit to move her up to the higher category.
The continuing success of his huge international practice, which spans England and the Middle East, has propelled Byron James into Top Recommended. A string of victories in major cases and an appearance before the Supreme Court has cemented his place among the top lawyers of his generation.
Having won Family Lawyer of the Year at the Spear’s Wealth Management Awards 2021 there was no doubt that Fiona Shackleton would retain her place in our Top Flight category. Baroness Shackleton of Belgravia, partner at Payne Hicks Beach’s family law department, is one of the country’s most revered practitioners. Would it even be a Spear’s Family Law Index without her?
Representing the children in the Sheikh Mohammed/Princess Haya case – described as the largest divorce case in British legal history – has capped a remarkable few years in a remarkable career for Deirdre Fottrell QC. The 1GC barrister has appeared before the European Court of Human Rights and the Privy Council. She has seen the Court of Appeal on more than 40 occasions. She is a deputy high court judge. We’re pleased to say she is Top Recommended in Spear’s.
Don Schuck and Ronnie Schindel
American family law is increasingly important to Spear’s and its international audience. As such, the 2022 edition of the Spear’s Family Law Index includes two new faces from Pryor Cashman in New York, Don Schuck and Ronnie Schindel – both extremely capable and highly respected lawyers.
Rising Star round-up
We have three new names in our Rising Stars category: Charlotte Symes of Family Law in Partnership, and Jennifer Palmer and Charlotte Hartley (described by one of her nominators as ‘future silk material’), both of 1 Kings Bench Walk. Welcome to the index.
See the 2022 edition of the Spear’s Family Law Index here
Image: Shutterstock; Kawing921
