Southern Family Law Conference returns for another successful year
14 September 2026
Last Thursday saw the return of the Southern Family Law Conference, which took place at The Harbour Hotel, Brighton, hosted by Edward Cooke and Lauren Guy. At our third sell-out conference, delegates were treated to a range of presentations by a host of speakers, with the overarching theme of the conference being ‘Hot Topics and Future Trends’.
We would like to thank our expert speakers who spoke on the following topics:
- What are the most important financial remedy cases you need to know about? - Christopher Wagstaffe KC and Charlotte Trace, 29 Bedford Row
- Latest Developments in Private Law Children Work – Darren Howe KC MCIArb and Clare Ciborowska MCIArb, 1 Crown Office Row
- Family Law Reform 2026 – Joanne Edwards (Forsters), Graeme Fraser (William Surges) and Charlotte Bradley (Kingsley Napley)
- Therapeutic Skills for Lawyers – Annmarie Carvalho, The Carvalho Consultancy
- The Voice of the Child – How is it to be heard? - Angharad Rudkin and Edward Cooke
Each speaker shared valuable insights into key developments and emerging trends within their area of family law, offering delegates practical, up-to-date training. Over 100 delegates attended, all keen to sharpen their skills and stay ahead of industry changes to continue to deliver the highest standard of service to their clients.
Beyond the sessions themselves, the conference offered valuable opportunities for delegates to network with peers, build new connections and exchange ideas with fellow family law professionals.
Our annual family law debate
The afternoon session saw delegates debate the motion: “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.”
With Helen Adam (Wells Family Mediation) and Tristan Harvey (QEB Chambers) speaking for the motion, and Kate Elliott (Family Law Partners) and Ben Fearnley (29 Bedford Row) against, the debate was Chaired by Christopher Wagstaffe KC MCIArb (29 Bedford Row).
After a lively debate, voting concluded with a majority of delegates voting against the motion. More importantly, the debate raised many issues about how the court approaches the question of the welfare of children in financial remedy cases which we hope will stimulate further discussion on this important subject.
As the conference drew to a close, delegates enjoyed drinks and canapés at the networking reception overlooking Brighton seafront.
Supporting Pelican Parcels: supporting Sussex families experiencing hardship
Each year all profits from the conference are donated to a local charity selected by our team. This year we are supporting Pelican Parcels, a Brighton & Hove based charity whose vision is a community in which families and carers have all the essentials for their children. Working in partnership with local council services such as health visitors, social workers, women's shelters and other charities and agencies, Pelican Parcels take pre-loved and new item donations for babies and children up to age 16, and redistribute them to families facing financial hardship.
Evie Oglethorpe, Fundraising Manager at Pelican Parcels, joined us on the day and spoke passionately about the challenges families face and how Pelican Parcels is helping to meet those needs and make a profound difference to families across Sussex. You can read more about Pelican Parcels and the work they do on their website.
Edward Cooke commented on the day
“We were delighted to celebrate a third sell-out year of the Southern Family Law Conference. We are so grateful to all our speakers, sponsors and delegates for making this such a memorable day. It was wonderful to come together with valued colleagues from across the family law profession to discuss the issues and changes facing our daily practice, and we hope that delegates came away inspired and full of fresh ideas and approaches.
The impact of our work as family law practitioners with children in the process was a central theme throughout the day at this year’s conference, and this was also the case in our annual debate, in which the panel argued their positions with real conviction and sparked lively discussion among delegates.
We were also pleased to focus on law reform this year. With the recent government consultation on family law reform, and the publication of the Family Solutions Group’s report earlier this year, “Putting Children First, The Evolving Role of the Family Law Professional”, delegates heard from leading figures from Resolution and the Family Solutions Group.
The very nature of family law is that there always seem to be various changes afoot, reflecting the fact that society of course changes over time. One of the aims of our conference is to stimulate debate and discussion around possible areas of change in family law which may improve the ways in which we, as family law practitioners, are able to support families.
We are delighted that as in previous years, all profits from the conference and donations from delegates will go to a local charity. This year, all profits will be going to Pelican Parcels, a local charity supporting families experiencing hardship by providing pre-loved and new essentials. Many thanks to everyone who donated on the day and since. We are proud of the impact we are all able to make to their work."
Some initial feedback from delegates
"Too many brilliant speakers and people to mention but there was a really lovely community feel about the day"
"Once again a day of wonderful speakers, thoughtful insights, and the opportunity to connect with colleagues. What a beautiful day for it, too. I am certainly looking forward to the next one!"
"I wanted to add to the, no doubt plentiful, feedback you will have had about yesterday’s fantastic conference. Every part of it was packed with incredibly high-quality content, it covered an incredible range of practice areas and skills, and it was uplifting and positive. A great way to go into autumn, thank you all!"
"I wanted to say a huge thanks to you for hosting such a wonderful event yesterday. They just keep getting better and how gorgeous to spend the day in Brighton, too."
