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Jonathan is an accomplished barrister with a comprehensive practice in all aspects of family law, specialising in matters concerning children. He possesses extensive expertise in representing clients across both public and private law proceedings, dealing with the most serious allegations of harm including inflicted injuries, sexual abuse, domestic abuse, emotional harm, parental alienation, neglect and fabricated and factitious illness. Jonathan has extensive experience in cases involving jurisdictional issues and child abduction. He is known as a hard-working, calm and confident advocate, who represents clients with a keen attention to detail.
Jonathan is a co-author of a chapter in Rayden and Jackson on ‘Relationship Breakdown, Finances and Children’. He has written articles in Family Law Week and regularly delivers seminars, most recently on Domicile and Jurisdiction, Domestic Abuse and the Voice of the Child. Jonathan volunteers for Jewish Women’s Aid, providing advice and representation to women affected by domestic abuse.
Public Children Law > >
| Jonathan is regularly instructed to represent local authorities, parents and guardians in public law proceedings. He acts in complex cases, including lengthy fact finding hearings dealing with allegations of sexual abuse and inflicted injury, featuring complex medical evidence and evidence from children. Jonathan has experience of Hague Convention adoptions and his analysis of the applicable law was adopted by the Court in the recent case of Re A (foreign adoption) [2023] EWFC 221. His practice encompasses secure accommodation orders, forced marriage, FGM and more commonly deprivation of liberty. Jonathan is experienced in special guardianship. He was led in the Court of Appeal in Re A (A Child) [2018] EWCA Civ 2240, concerning the merits of a judge’s decision to make a special guardianship order in favour of a one-year-old child’s foster carer, as opposed to his family in Ghana. |
International Children Law > >
Jonathan regularly represents applicants and respondents in child abduction proceedings, whether under the 1980 Hague Convention or the Court’s inherent jurisdiction. He has extensive experience of wardship proceedings, including in ‘stranded spouse’ cases. Jonathan acted in the leading case in the Court of Appeal, JK [2025] EWCA Civ 1309, on the exercise of the parens patriae jurisdiction. Further, he represented the applicant in the matter of F v M [2024] EWHC 1887 (Fam), seeking the summary return of the child pursuant to the 1980 Hague Convention, in which Peel J praised Jonathan’s ‘high quality, focussed, written and oral advocacy.’ In Re S (A Child): Refusal of Summary Return to UAE [2025] EWHC 892 (Fam), Jonathan successfully resisted an application by the father for the summary return of the child to the United Arab Emirates.
Private Children Law > >
Jonathan is frequently instructed in private law matters including representing children’s guardians in complex cases. He has specialist expertise dealing with allegations of domestic or sexual abuse, religious identity and background, health, internal and international relocations and intractable disputes, often involving allegations of parental alienation. Jonathan was recently led by Deirdre Fottrell KC, representing the applicant trans-female biological father seeking contact with her estranged gender-neutral child. None of the allegations pursued by the mother were found proved and direct contact was ordered between the applicant and her child.