Expertise

Ellie has a firm grasp of international family law issues. She has a particular interest in cases with an Anglo-US dimension, having spent time working in Los Angeles for a prestigious US family law firm before qualifying as a solicitor in England and Wales.

Ellie is often instructed by professional clients (or their spouses) in cases involving complex income arrangements and detailed incentive schemes. She has extensive experience in private equity cases and has often represented board-level CEOs and CFOs (or their spouses). Such cases have resulted in Ellie in providing clients with a strong offering and understanding of complex cross-border trust, tax and corporate/commercial issues.

Ellie also advises clients with complex private children disputes and/or cases with criminal and or domestic abuse aspects. The Legal 500 notes Ellie’s specialism in managing novel and complex children matters.

Experience

• Acted on behalf of the wife in AB v AC [2018] EWHC 1319 (Fam), a private equity case involving complex multi-jurisdictional, trust and taxation matters.
• Advising the wife upon divorce following a long marriage in respect of financial remedy proceedings where there were significant issues of disclosure.
• Representing a father in highly contentious Children Act and financial remedy proceedings. Securing an equal shared care arrangement at Final Hearing.
• Appearing on the Pro Bono Recognition List 2024 after successfully achieving a termination of a father’s right to parental responsibility in a case involving indecent images of children.
• ARQ v YAQ [2022] EWFC 128 – assisted the Stewarts’ team at first instance in preparing the applicant husband in High Court financial remedy proceedings, the key determinative involving arguments as to whether all or some of very significant pre-marital assets from the husband had become ‘matrimonialised’ and so subject to the sharing principle.

Recognition

Ellie is acknowledged as a Leading Associate by the Legal 500 and is a Recommended family lawyer in Spear’s 500. She has also been nominated for Private Client Rising Star of the Year in the Legal 500 Northern Powerhouse Awards.

Career

Before joining Penningtons Manches Cooper LLP as a trainee and qualifying there, Ellie worked for the chief financial officer of a FTSE 100 company, and for stockbroker and corporate advisor Numis Securities Limited.

Publications

Ellie is a regular contributor of articles to legal publications and the wider media and has provided expert media commentary on family law issues to Tatler, SheerLuxe, the Yorkshire Post and the New Law Journal.

Her article credits include:

• Autumn Budget 2024: How will non-dom changes impact divorce and international families that live in the UK?
• Family law brief in New Law Journal considers jurisdiction, privacy, FDR hearings and private equity
• Myth busting post-divorce settlements

Personal

Ellie is a qualified yoga instructor. She takes a holistic view on health and recognises the importance of well-being and prioritising it through difficult and challenging personal times. In an ideal world, any time not spent in the office would be spent hiking or riding through the Rocky Mountains.