Experience

  • Representing the husband in highly contested proceedings, involving a complex web of off-shore trust and corporate assets, requiring asset tracing and expert tax and valuation advice
  • Advising the wife, following a long marriage with a diverse portfolio of marital and non-marital assets (including family businesses, commercial and residential property and a collection of vintage cars), which involved arguments relating to special contribution and inherited wealth
  • Representing a highly vulnerable spouse, following a short marriage involving physical and emotional abuse, in circumstances where all the assets were held in off-shore trusts
  • Representing a parent, who successfully sought a shared care order, as well as orders in relation to schooling and change of the child’s name, following a psychological report on the behaviour of the other parent and the impact of that behaviour on the child
  • Representing the father in the landmark international relocation case of C v D [2011] EWHC 335 (Fam)

Accreditations and Memberships

Sophie is a member of Resolution.

Expertise

Sophie specialises in complex family cases for high net worth individuals.  She advises clients on all areas of family breakdown, but with a particular focus on the associated financial issues.  A significant number of her cases involve trust assets or family businesses with complex issues of valuation.

Sophie has a leading practice in children cases, and regularly advises clients in respect of the arrangements for children following separation, disputes in relation to key decisions affecting children (e.g. parentage, the exercise of parental responsibility, schooling, change of name) and applications by one parent to relocate abroad.

Testimonials

  • She is acknowledged to be “really hard working, driven and dedicated to her clients.”
  • Spears acknowledges the “constructive approach” which Sophie brings to all aspects of family law, “supporting her clients through the divorce or separation process…with pragmatism and sensitivity”.

Career

Sophie read French, German and Law at Cambridge University.  She joined Stewarts in May 2017 after 9 years at Withers.  Sophie has also worked as a philanthropy advisor for high net worth clients.

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