“Norman Hartnell gave me confidence. He gave me information of the facts as he saw the law in my personal situation very clearly.”
Norman Hartnell is Joint Managing Director at The Family Law Company. He is a pioneer in changing the face of family law and in driving the business from its creation to the striving business it is today. He promotes a problem solving approach and leads the way in constructive methods of resolving family disputes whilst at all times keeping children at the centre and protecting the vulnerable.
Norman is a Solicitor, Mediator, Collaborative Family Lawyer and Arbitrator.
He has spent over 30 years specialising in Family Law and was one of the country’s first family mediators. He went on to established the Devon Family Mediation Agency Limited (now Devon Family Solutions) – one of the first mediation consortiums in the country with a Legal Services Commission franchise. He was also the Secretary and Mediation representative for the Peninsula Family Justice Council active in promoting interdisciplinary training throughout its existence.
He has served on numerous Resolution and Court committees, is experienced in all forms of family mediation and is authorised to consult with children as part of his mediation practice. He has represented parents, guardians and children in private and public law cases.
He has extensive experience in complex divorce and related financial issues. He was the first solicitor in the South West and one of the first in the country to qualify as an Arbitrator authorised to conduct Arbitrations in both Financial and Children issues.
Photography is a big passion for Norman in his spare time, especially on the beautiful rolling hills of Dartmoor. To see Norman’s pictures, you can follow him on Twitter @norman_hartnell
His work includes:
• Acting for wife suffering from cancer whose husband had concealed a substantial pension and had persuaded her before she instructed us to accept a low lump sum. It was only when we investigated his financial circumstances that his pension came to light. He then argued that the wife should have a low lump sum because of her illness. She was awarded a significant pension sharing order which enabled the wife to immediately have access to substantial funds. The case was reported in the law reports.
• Acting for a father whose wife removed their daughter to a different part of the country and put many obstacles in the way of contact. Over a period of time and several hearings, an outcome was achieved which saw the child placed with the father permanently.
• Representing a mother who had previously poor advice which resulted in the court making erroneous assessments and overlooking her concerns about a father who represented a risk to her and the child. Despite the passage of time and the intervening decisions of the court we were able to overturn the original basis of the court’s error on appeal to the High Court. This case was reported in the law reports.
• Representing a local businessman in relation to both financial and children issues involving complex financial matters and a mother who employed a variety of tactics to frustrate his relationship with his daughter. He was extremely pleased with the financial outcome secured and now enjoys a close relationship with his daughter, spending significant periods of time with her each week.
• Representing a wife whose husband had defrauded the revenue. The case involved a contest between the husband, representatives of the children, the wife and the Inland Revenue which was reported in the law reports on two occasions. The husband – having lost all his assets to the Inland Revenue – then obtained an inheritance which I was able to freeze and secure for the wife.
Norman is listed as a Leading Lawyer by Wiselaw
