Philip Newton

Philip Newton is a highly experienced family law specialist who has spent the last 30 years practising exclusively in this field. He began as a criminal barrister, practising from the Temple (including the Attorney General’s set), where he developed the robust courtroom skills that now help him to get the best results for his family law clients. Philip now focuses on Private Law Children disputes, including as an Arbitrator, and Financial Remedies on divorce and civil partnership dissolution but his experience over the years covers all areas of family law.

Philip is particularly known for acting with great sympathy for his clients’ difficulties. He has an absolute determination to achieve the very best he can for them, even in the most hard-fought family disputes or complex finance cases.

Philip has a Master’s degree in international human rights law and holds a Diploma from the International Institute of Human Rights in Strasbourg, specialist qualifications which help him to deal confidently with the variety of international issues that arise in his practice and have given him a deep dedication to protecting human rights in general; particularly where people are vulnerable because of mental or physical disability, or by circumstances such as their cultural, religious, or racial background.

Arbitration

Philip is also a qualified Family Law (Children) Arbitrator (‘the Children Scheme’), which means he can be instructed by parties to decide the issues  between them. This avoids the need for court proceedings, and all the delays in the court system, and follows a process and timetable agreed by the parties while still resulting in a binding and enforceable decision.

Philip acts for clients in all aspects of divorce and civil partnership financial remedy; advising, drafting documents and representing them in court. He has over 30 years’ experience in financial remedy, including extremely complex cases.

The areas that Philip helps with include maintenance for a spouse (whether long-term or interim), and financial provision for children, acting in disputes over matrimonial property (e.g. the house and any other assets) and dealing with injunctions to prevent one party from disposing of the any of the matrimonial assets. He is experienced in dealing with cases involving complex assets – such as multiple businesses and property held abroad.

Philip helps his clients to understand their options and to make decisions at every stage of the proceedings from First Directions to Final Hearings, and applications to vary the final Order and appeals.

Examples of his financial remedy cases have involved complications including debilitating illness, a lottery win, wealth acquired after separation, a stellar career prematurely ended by mental health problems, multiple businesses, property held abroad, conduct allegations relating to prostitution successfully relied upon, variation of maintenance and lump sums, set aside and appeals.

“Upon meeting you for the first time that morning, I was immediately assured that you had obviously made a close study of the brief…that you had familiarised yourself with, and understood, all the finer points of the case. My spirits and confidence rose as I realised I was in good hands…for me it was the best outcome for which I could possibly have dared wish. And, for that I can only express my heartfelt gratitude.”

In Philip’s 30 years of representing clients in family disputes he has covered almost every imaginable parental dispute involving children. Most of his cases involve complex issues, and he has vast experience of dealing with cases involving disputes between parents over issues such as which parent the children will live with, contact, removal from the country, including applying for or preventing emigration with the children and obtaining the children’s return after a wrongful removal abroad. These disputes frequently also include children’s schooling; medical treatment, cultural and religious differences, and many others.

He supports his clients by advising, drafting documents and representing them in Court in all aspects of family disputes over children.

Arbitration

Philip is also qualified as a Children Law Arbitrator and welcomes instructions in private law disputes by both parties to decide the issue between them. Arbitration can be done privately and according to a timetable dictated by the client, rather than by the court system, but also results in a binding decision at the end of it.

Almost every aspect of Philip’s family practice has involved injunctions of one sort or another in the 30 plus years that he has specialised in this area. The need for these injunctions might arise on their own, because of allegations of domestic violence, and/or an application for one of the parties to be made to leave from the family home.

They might also be bound up with protection of the parent and children in a children case or protection of family money in a matrimonial finance case.

Non-Matrimonial Assets – Assets Acquired Post-Separation

Legal Services Payment Orders in Children Act Proceedings

The thwaite jurisdiction: The power to vary orders not yet fully executed

A Recent Judgment of Mr Justice Mostyn:

The Advance of the Principle of Separating Off Non-Matrimonial Assets But Balanced by Needs and Resources Issues

Small Money Cases can be the Hardest Particularly if the Parties have Spent All the Money Arguing over the Children

Spousal Maintenance, Future Earnings, Income Needs and a Re-Examination of Waggott

Pensions in Financial Remedy Cases – A Short Review

Permission to Appeal & Barder in Lockdown

Some Further Thoughts on Pre-Nuptial Agreements