Family Law developments in 2025: What can we expect in England and Wales?

We explore likely developments in the following areas:

• Cohabitation reform
• Divorce and dissolution of civil partnerships
• Transparency: increased reporting of cases
• Increased use of Non-Court Dispute Resolution (NCDR) options
• Nuptial agreements and relationship planning
• Financial settlements on divorce and civil partnership dissolution
• Children law
• Domestic abuse
• Surrogacy
• Contempt of court

Cohabitation reform

Under current laws, cohabiting couples have much less protection than married couple or civil partners when they separate. Learn about the differences between marriage and cohabitation.

These longstanding calls for change have gained momentum over recent years. ‘Family Law Reform Now’ was established with The Cohabitation Project holding its first conference in 2023.   

The current Government has committed to “strengthen the rights and protections available to women in cohabiting couples”. We hope that reform is high on the agenda during 2025.

Divorce and dissolution of civil partnerships

Separating Together: One Couple One Lawyer: ‘No-fault’ divorce introduced in 2022 opened the door to the possibility of practitioners acting for both parties.

The ‘One Couple One Lawyer’ approach represents a paradigm shift in resolving the issues arising on separation. It emphasizes collaboration, cost-efficiency and emotional well-being over adversarial tactics. While it may not be suitable for every couple, it offers a promising alternative for those seeking a peaceful and respectful end to their marriage or relationship with an expectation that more will be choosing this option during 2025.

Resolution have developed a practice model, and the Family Procedure Rule Committee have formed a working group looking at single lawyer models with a view to setting out proposals for a pilot scheme. Whether that pilot scheme will be rolled out in 2025 we will have to wait and see.

In the meantime, Weightmans’ family team are already embracing the opportunity to work with both parties to a separation. It is a huge and radical leap forward to enable more couples to reach a solution together. We predict that momentum will continue to increase as:

• One Couple One Lawyer aims to maintain or even strengthen relationships between the parties involved.
• Litigation can be costly, with legal fees paid by both parties and the potential for lengthy legal battles. Using one lawyer can be much more cost-effective, reducing unnecessary expenses.
• The parties are empowered to craft their own tailored solutions rather than relying on a judge's decision. This results in outcomes that better align with the unique needs and priorities of your family.
• It can lead to much quicker resolutions, enabling parties to move forward with their lives sooner than would be the case with litigation.

Transparency: increased reporting of cases

Transparency in the Family Courts has been a hot topic over the last 12 months and the trend towards greater openness through the increased reporting of case law seems set to continue in 2025. The aim is to provide a greater understanding of the legal process and how the law operates in practice.

Children proceedings: from early 2025, subject to strict rules on anonymity, journalists and legal bloggers will be able to report on public and private children cases across all of England and Wales through the expansion of the Family Reporting Pilot (FRP), which currently operates in 19 Designated Family Judge (DFJ) areas. It will extend to all courts in England and Wales.

Financial remedy proceedings: the transparency reporting pilot (TRP) for financial proceedings began in January 2024 and currently operates in the Central Family Court as well as in Birmingham and Leeds. On 11 December 2024 it was announced that the pilot would continue for another year but would be expanded, and rolled out to all financial remedy courts in England and Wales.

Subject to strict rules around anonymity and confidentiality, the expanded pilot will allow reporters to report on financial remedy proceedings taking place in all courts in England and Wales.

Confidentiality and anonymity: transparency in the family court is widely welcomed, but many separating couples, not just those with a high or public profile or commercially sensitive business arrangements, actively seek to avoid the risk of their case being reported. Non-court dispute resolution options such as mediation, collaborative law and arbitration are available to maintain confidentiality.

See our video on resolving a family law dispute for more information.

Increased use of Non-Court Dispute Resolution (NCDR) options

Set against a backdrop of increasing transparency, with increasing pressure and backlogs in the court service, significant amendments to the Family Procedure Rules in England and Wales were introduced during 2024 to promote Non-Court Dispute Resolution (NCDR) in family law cases. The changes, designed to encourage couples to resolve their disputes away from the family court arena, included the following:

1. Expanded definition of NCDR: the revised rules broaden the scope of NCDR to include mediation, arbitration, neutral third-party evaluations (e.g., private Financial Dispute Resolution processes), and collaborative law. This expansion provides families with a wider array of options tailored to their specific circumstances.
2. Mandatory consideration of NCDR: parties are now required to actively consider NCDR at various stages of their case. They must complete Form FM5, detailing their position on NCDR, prior to the first hearing and at subsequent stages if directed. This measure ensures that alternatives to court are thoroughly evaluated.
3. Court's authority to adjourn for NCDR: courts have been granted the power to adjourn proceedings to facilitate NCDR, even without the parties' agreement. This authority underscores the judiciary's commitment to promoting out-of-court resolutions.
4. Cost implications for non-engagement: failure to engage in NCDR without good reason may now influence cost decisions, potentially leading to adverse cost orders against uncooperative parties. This serves as a financial incentive to consider NCDR seriously.

These developments are likely to continue during 2025 reflecting the growing move towards prioritizing amicable resolutions in family law, aiming to benefit all parties involved by reducing the emotional and financial strains associated with court battles.

Family Mediation Voucher Scheme: the Family Mediation Voucher Scheme is due to end on 31 March 2025.

The previous Government had stated that the scheme should be replaced with a permanent mediation fund providing up to £500 per children dispute and either the same amount for a financial dispute or funding being subject to legal aid thresholds.

It is anticipated that the new Government will continue the scheme in 2025 but extend the deadline before announcing any long-term plans.

Nuptial agreements and relationship planning

The Law Commission recently published a scoping report examining the laws governing financial remedies on divorce and the dissolution of civil partnerships in England and Wales. The report, released on 18 December 2024, considered the current legal framework, established by the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, as lacking the clarity and predictability necessary for fair outcomes, often leading to disputes rather than settlements.

As part of the review, the report considers the need for reform around the law relating to nuptial agreements, commonly known as pre-nuptial, post-nuptial or separation agreements provided certain conditions were met.

At present these agreements are not automatically enforceable in England and Wales although courts may take them into account, especially if both parties entered into the agreement freely and with a full understanding of its implications.

Under the proposals put forward by the Commission, a court would not be able to make an order that undermined a qualifying nuptial agreement except to meet either party's needs, or in the interests of a child of the family.

We wait to see whether the proposals move forward during 2025, but until then you can read our full analysis of how pre and post nuptial agreements currently operate.

Financial settlements on divorce and civil partnership dissolution

Law Commission review: as mentioned above, the Law Commission’s scoping report was published on 18 December 2024 and is subject to the Government's response. It could provide the basis for a full review and future financial remedies reform for married and civilly partnered couples.

The scoping report looks at potential models for:

• Codifying existing case law, either with the court retaining wide discretion or with further reform on specific areas where the law is not settled.
• Guided discretion, with underpinning principles and objectives informing the court's discretion.
• A matrimonial property regime, with the court having only limited discretion.

The scoping report also identifies discrete areas for potential reform including nuptial agreements, spousal maintenance, pensions, conduct (section 25(2)(g), MCA 1973) and whether the court should be able to make financial orders for children over the age of 18.

Although we welcome reform in this area, we expect that it will take some time to come to fruition, and hope that it is not at the expense of reform for unmarried cohabiting couples.

Fast-track procedure for lower value financial remedy cases: the Family Procedure Rule Committee has approved plans to pilot the fast-track procedure for lower value financial remedy cases. The pilot will begin over a 12-month period starting in late February 2025 in a select number of courts.

Cases with net assets of less than £250,000 will be finalised within 30 months. The process will be front loaded with Forms E, valuations, mortgage capacities, questionnaires, replies and settlement proposals all provided before the first hearing which will be treated as a Financial Dispute Resolution appointment.

Reform of Duxbury tables: The Duxbury tables have been a cornerstone in divorce settlements in England and Wales providing a method of calculating a lump sum that replaces ongoing spousal maintenance.

The tables estimate the capital required to generate a specific annual income for the recipient traditionally intended to last for their lifetime. However, criticisms have emerged over the years suggesting that the assumptions underlying these calculations may not accurately reflect real-world investment conditions or the current judicial approach to spousal maintenance.

In response to these concerns, the Duxbury Working Party – a committee comprising legal and financial experts – conducted a comprehensive review and published their final report in November 2024. The report offers several key recommendations aimed at modernizing the Duxbury calculations to better align with contemporary financial realities and judicial practices as follows:

Read our summary of the proposals for maintenance reform.

The recommendations are aimed at enhancing fairness and accuracy in financial settlements. While the report’s recommendations are not legally binding it is expected that they will start to influence the way the courts deal with these matters in 2025 and beyond.

Children law

Reforming the Child Arrangements Programme (PD 12B): in 2018, the President of the Family Division announced the need to reform the Child Arrangements Programme (CAP). The President observed that an unprecedented number of children law applications are being brought before family courts and in relation to private law, the court is not the best place for parents to resolve their disputes. That trend has unfortunately continued prompting the reinstatement of the Private Law Working Group to formulate proposals for reform.

On 21 February 2022 a pilot ‘Pathfinder’ scheme was introduced that was intended to adopt a more investigative approach by specified courts in Dorset and North Wales and has since been extended to Birmingham and Cardiff. The process featured earlier gatekeeping and information gathering to enable earlier triaging decisions to be made and front-loading engagement with parents. The courts were also encouraged to ascertain the wishes and feelings of the child more clearly and conduct a more holistic, multi-agency approach developing working relationships with local partners, such as mediators and local authorities to support families.

The pilot ends later this year but is likely to be extended.

Initiating and managing cases online: the court service in England and Wales is in the process of developing systems and processes to enable certain applications to be issued and managed online. A pilot scheme allowing for applications for an order under section 8 of the Children Act 1989 to be completed online was rolled out in 2018. Since February 2020, legal representatives have been able to complete and submit Form C100 applications online with the current pilot scheme set to end on 31 March 2025.

The court service has also been trialling additional applications that can be issued on-line in a selected number of courts. That process began in May 2023 in Swansea and Mid and West Wales before being extended to include Kingston-Upon-Hull (Hull) and Grimsby Family. The trial will continue until 31 March 2025 although is likely to be extended.

Mandatory use of the service for legal professionals will not be before summer 2025, with a further update to be provided in early 2025.

Review of presumption of parental involvement: the Government has for some time being reviewing the presumption of parental involvement in child arrangement disputes with the Ministry of Justice confirming in February 2024 that it will publish the outcome "at some point”.

In the meantime, Pathfinder courts have been piloting a proposed reformed which includes trialling a "safety pathway" that prioritises safety over any presumption of contact or ongoing parental involvement. This recommendation may ensure that the statutory presumption of parental involvement is retained in suitable cases where there is no history of domestic abuse.

Restricting parental responsibility where one parent kills the other: on 23 May 2024, the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 (VPA 2024) received royal assent.

Section 18 of the VPA 2024, which is not yet in force, amends the Children Act 1989 to introduce new sections 10A and 10B, which provide that where a parent with parental responsibility (PR) (the offender) is convicted of the murder or voluntary manslaughter of the other parent, the Crown Court must make a prohibited steps order (PSO) when sentencing the offender. The PSO restricts the offender from taking any step to meet their PR in respect of the child until the order is varied or discharged.

It is possible that section 18 of the VPA 2024 may come into force during the course of 2025.

Domestic abuse

Domestic Abuse Protection Orders pilot: On 27 November 2024, the Government initiated a pilot programme introducing the Domestic Abuse Protection Order (DAPO) and Domestic Abuse Protection Notice (DAPN) to enhance protections for domestic abuse victims. The pilot is being conducted in Greater Manchester, the London boroughs of Croydon, Bromley and Sutton and with the British Transport Police.

The new measures provided for in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 aim to protect individuals from all forms of domestic abuse, including physical, psychological, stalking, and coercive control.

DAPNs are immediate protective measures issued by the police following a domestic abuse incident, imposing instant restrictions on perpetrators. Subsequently, authorities can apply to the Magistrates' Court for a DAPO, which may include conditions such as exclusion zones, electronic monitoring, and mandatory attendance in behaviour change programs.

It is hoped that these new tools will provide a unified and robust approach to safeguarding victims across civil, criminal, and family courts. The pilot's success could lead to a nationwide implementation, offering more effective and longer-term protection for victims and their children.

Integrated Domestic Abuse Court pilots: Integrated Domestic Abuse Court (IDAC) are intended to consider family and criminal matters in parallel, with the aim of providing more consistent support for victims.

The pilot courts will explore a "one family one judge" approach, in which certain concurrent family and criminal proceedings involving domestic abuse are heard by the same judge. The aim is to reduce the need for victims to re-tell their stories and promote a more joined up approach to the handling of such cases between different jurisdictions.

It was intended that these courts would start hearing cases in autumn 2021. However, in an update to its implementation plan published in May 2023, the Government confirmed that it had adopted a phased approach to the IDAC pilots.

It is expected that further updates regarding the instruction of IDACs will be made after the Government has published a broader review of domestic abuse and Children Act proceedings in the spring of 2025.

Surrogacy

Law Commission’s surrogacy report and draft legislation

In March 2023, the Law Commission of England and Wales, together with the Scottish Law Commission, published a comprehensive report titled "Building Families Through Surrogacy: A New Law."

This report proposes significant reforms to modernize and clarify surrogacy laws in the UK, aiming to better support children, surrogates, and intended parents as follows.

• New pathway to legal parenthood: the report introduces a new regulatory regime that allows intended parents to become the legal parents of the child from birth, provided certain conditions are met. This pathway is designed to offer greater certainty and support for all parties involved.
• Altruistic surrogacy emphasis: the proposed reforms ensure that surrogacy in the UK continues to operate on an altruistic basis, explicitly prohibiting commercial surrogacy arrangements. It recommends the creation of non-profit making bodies called Surrogacy Regulated Organisations to oversee surrogacy agreements and suggests reforms to the payments that intended parents can make to their surrogates.
• Enhanced safeguards and support: the recommendations include measures to provide clarity, safeguards, and support for the child, the surrogate, and the intended parents, ensuring that the best interests of the child are prioritized.

These reforms aim to address the outdated aspects of current surrogacy laws, providing a clearer legal framework that reflects contemporary societal values and practices. On 8 November 2023, the Government stated that the recommendations would be reviewed. A full response is awaited, it is hoped during 2025.

Read more about surrogacy reform.

Contempt of court

In July 2024, the Law Commission launched a consultation reviewing the law on contempt of court and reigniting the debate between protecting the integrity of judicial proceedings and safeguarding fundamental freedoms, such as the right to free speech and a free press.

Contempt of court is an area of law designed to ensure that justice is administered fairly and without interference, but critics argue that certain provisions may be outdated or overly broad in the context of modern media and societal norms.

The Law Commission has identified several critical issues that warrant a fresh look at the legislation:

1. Prejudicial media reporting: the rise of digital media and social networking platforms has made it increasingly challenging to regulate reporting that might prejudice ongoing cases. Viral posts and citizen journalism often bypass traditional editorial controls, raising questions about enforceability and proportionality.
2. Ambiguity in definitions: terms like “prejudicial” and “scandalising the court” are seen by some as vague, potentially leading to inconsistent application or chilling effects on legitimate criticism of the judiciary.
3. Balancing free expression: the review examines whether the law appropriately balances the need to protect judicial proceedings with individuals’ rights to free speech.
4. Modernising enforcement: Traditional methods of enforcing contempt laws, such as fines or imprisonment, may not always be effective or appropriate in the digital age. The Commission is exploring alternative mechanisms, such as digital takedown orders and enhanced public awareness campaigns.

The review has garnered mixed reactions. Legal professionals largely support efforts to clarify and modernise the law, emphasising the importance of maintaining public confidence in the justice system. However, free speech advocates caution against measures that might stifle legitimate criticism or investigative journalism. Media organisations have also expressed concerns about the potential for overreach, particularly with proposed digital enforcement mechanisms.

The Law Commission’s report is expected in late 2025 and is likely to represent a pivotal moment for contempt of court law.

Conclusion

We hope that 2025 continues the drive to improve the experience of those involved in a family law dispute or issue, although fear that limited resource and time means that it will not happen at pace.

We continue to work with families throughout in England, Wales, Scotland and beyond to help them find a solution to their issues in the most effective and efficient way.