Southern Family Law Conference returns for a third year
19 May 2026
We are delighted that the Southern Family Law Conference will return for a third year, taking place on Thursday 10 September 2026 at the Harbour Hotel, Brighton.
A sell-out event in its first two years, the one-day conference provides learning and development opportunities, focuses on "Hot topics and future trends in family law", as well as networking opportunities with family law colleagues.
Delegates will hear from an eminent array of speakers from across the family law profession on areas including financial remedy and private law children work, family law reform (including proposed law reform to both financial remedy and cohabitation law), therapeutic skills for lawyers and the voice of the child.
Edward Cooke commented:
“Building on the success of our first two annual conferences, we are delighted to return for a third year with another inspiring line up. We are pleased to welcome some of the leading thinkers and practitioners, who will provide engaging discussions and debates on hot topics and future trends facing everyone who works within family law. We hope you will join us for what promises to be an inspirational and informative day with exceptional networking opportunities."
Areas Covered
We will hear from expert speakers, exploring the latest trends and hot topics in family law. The day will conclude with a debate: " This house believes that children are not in practice the court’s “first consideration” under MCA 1973 s25 as too little regard is given to their welfare and to the impact on them of their parents' separation, and that many children remain dependent well beyond the age of 18."
Refreshments will be provided throughout the day, with lunch served in the Harbour Hotel bar and restaurant and an early evening networking reception with refreshments and canapés.
Speakers will cover a range of topics in the following areas of practice:
- What are the most important financial remedy cases you need to know about in 2026 and why?
- Latest Developments in Private Law Children Work
- Family Law Reform 2026 – what is the future for Cohabitation and Financial Remedies Law in view of proposed reforms in these areas and what are the implications arising from the Family Solutions Group, “Putting Children First”?
- Therapeutic skills for lawyers
- The voice of the child – how is it to be heard?
Speakers
We are delighted to welcome the following speakers:
Hosts:
Secure your ticket to the Southern Family Law Conference
The Southern Family Law Conference will take place in Brighton at The Harbour Hotel from 9.30am to 5pm on Thursday 10 September, followed by a networking reception from 5pm to 7.30pm.
Fee: £210 + VAT per ticket
To include lunch and refreshments throughout the day and during the networking reception.
Early bird offer of £180 + VAT per ticket (until 18 June)
Click here to secure your tickets.
Who should attend?
The Southern Family Law Conference is designed for family law professionals at all stages of their careers. The conference content is specifically curated to support family law professionals keen to enhance their family law practice in modern, non-adversarial solutions wherever possible.
We welcome participants not only from the Southern Counties but also from further afield – the venue is closely situated to Brighton railway station, with excellent rail links across the South Coast, and is only 58 minutes from London Victoria.
We very much look forward to welcoming you.
To book your tickets, click here.
With thanks to our Sponsors and Charity Partner
The conference is organised by Edward Cooke Family Law.
With thanks to our sponsors:
As part of our ongoing commitment to our local communities, our conference will support local Brighton & Hove charity, Pelican Parcels, who take new and pre-loved donated items from families who no longer need the, and gift them to children who do. They are the only baby bank working up to the age of 16 in the city. In 2025 they gave out over 6,000 parcels, providing essential items including beds, buggies, clothes, shoes, uniform, toys, books, nappies and toiletries.
You can learn more about the amazing work they do here.
