Member Article

MAlister Family Law bolsters Children Team

In a key move designed to bolster the award-winning McAlister Family Law Children team, Melissa Jones has joined as associate and Charlotte Francis as assistant solicitor; both will be based in the firm’s Manchester offices.

Melissa brings to the role a wealth of experience, having been Head of the Family Department at IMD Solicitors where she specialised in provided legal advice and assistance for clients from migrant communities. Highly experienced in conducting divorce, financial and children matter cases with international elements, particularly cross-border issues.

Melissa has a vast amount of experience in dealing with all aspect of family law, and particularly children matters. She started her career at a specialist, niche firm dealing with legal aid matters and predominantly care proceedings, representing parents in the Family Court.

She is a member of Resolution and is committed to resolving family law issues in a constructive and positive manner; for those cases involving children matters, she encourages a child-focused approach, putting the needs of the children first.

Charlotte, who studied at Huddersfield University, achieved a Masters in Law and Practice, and qualified in August 2019. She has always specialised in Family Law, and has worked in various areas of that specialism, including private law children, and divorce and finances, always guiding clients to a result that would be beneficial for the whole family. Prior to joining McAlister Family Law, she held the position of solicitor at Makin Dixon Solicitors, an established niche firm specialising in Family Law matters.

She now focuses primarily on care matters, handling a varied caseload including domestic abuse, children issues and public law children matters.

McAlister Family Law, which has offices in Manchester city centre, throughout the North West, and London, has won multiple awards for its work; it is part of Manchester-based Beyond Group.

It is one of the very few firms in the country that specialises not only in divorce and family disputes, but also in children law. In 2018 it took a five-strong Children Law team from Slater and Gordon and a 10-person Child Care legal team from Stephensons, trebling the size of the business and creating a unique offering designed to be disruptive to traditional family practices in the North West.

Melissa said: “This is a very exciting move is for me, as the firm continues its rapid growth and increasing dominance of the family law market in the region. The firm’s reputation as experts in Children law is outstanding, and I am delighted to be able to join the firm as they build something very special in the industry.”

Charlotte said: “McAlister Family Law is a firm not only committed to divorce and related finance work but is also unique in its dedication to the welfare of children. Its work in taking care of those vulnerable members of society, who need legal representation in some of the most harrowing of cases, is one which really resonates with me and I am very pleased to be part of such an excellent team.”

Amanda McAlister, managing partner, added: “As a firm that is passionate about the welfare of children, we believe in recruiting only those people who share our vision and values, so we are delighted to welcome two such excellent solicitors to McAlister Family Law. Our Children law division is one of the most highly respected in the country, and I am confident that Melissa and Charlotte will make a significant contribution to the team.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Gill Alexander .