Ralph Marnham represented the Children’s Guardian and Michael Edwards represented the Secretary of State for the Home Department in an application for the recognition of a Nigerian Adoption Order.
This matter concerned an application for the recognition of a Nigerian Adoption Order made by the Family Court of Edo State on 5 December 2023. Ralph Marnham represented the Children’s Guardian, who supported the application, and Michael Edwards represented the SSHD, who intervened in the proceedings. The court recognised the adoption order, finding that the adoptive parents’ domicile was Nigeria, despite them spending a significant proportion of their time in the UK.
Read the judgment here.
Congratulations to our Newest Silk, Jacqueline Renton
Many congratulations to Jacqueline Renton KC, who is being sworn in as King’s Counsel at a ceremony in Westminster Hall today.
The 4PB family is incredibly proud of Jacqueline and looks forward to celebrating with her later this evening.
This brings our total number of Silks in Chambers to 26, meaning that 28% of our members are King’s Counsel.
Emma Spruce Returns from Maternity Leave
We are delighted to welcome Emma Spruce back from maternity leave.
2025 edition of the Dictionary of Private Children Law now out
The 2025 edition of the Dictionary of Private Children Law is now out. Co-authored by Piers Pressdee KC , together with Zoe Saunders and Prof Rob George, and with a foreword by Lord Justice Baker, it is an invaluable guide for all lawyers working in the private children law field, providing ready access to the relevant case-law, statutory sources and points of practice.
To purchase the latest edition, please click here.
Amean Elgadhy comments on S v F and M [2025] EWHC 439 (Fam) feature in the Metro
Amean Elgadhy was recently featured in Metro.co.uk, commenting on the implications of the recent High Court judgment in S v F and M [2025] EWHC 439 (Fam).
The case examined whether the parents’ decision to relocate S (their 14-year-old son) to Ghana fell within their scope of parental authority, given their concerns that S was at risk of peripheral involvement in gang culture. In the judgment, Mr Justice Hayden ruled that “the decision falls within what I regard as the generous ambit of parental decision-making, in which the State has no dominion.”
Read the article here.
Winning Essay of the 4PB’s Financial Remedy Essay Competition Published in the Family Law Journal
Congratulations to Rebecca Gardner, winner of 4PB’s Financial Remedy Essay Competition, whose winning essay has now been published in the Family Law Journal.
You can now read Rebecca’s essay, The law on maintenance should be reformed to provide for a formulaic approach, here.
The 4PB Alan Inglis Memorial Essay Prize 2025 is now open. For more information about the competition, click here.