Here, we welcome 33 Bedford Row specialist John Asaad to take a deep dive into fact-finding hearings in private children disputes. Helping to put another arrow of expertise in the practicing family lawyer’s quiver, John uses the following case law to expound in detail on the topic:

• Re R (Children) (Import of Criminal Principles in Family Proceedings) [2018] EWCA Civ 198
• V (A child) [2015] EWCA Civ 274
• F v G [2020] EWHC 2396
• Re H-N and ors [2021] EWCA Civ 448
• F v M [2021] EWFC 4
• R v P (Children: Similar Fact Evidence) [2020] EWCA Civ 1088
• Re A (A Child) (Relocation) [2020] EWHC 2878 (Fam)

John has established a busy multidisciplinary practice and accepts instructions in family law, general civil law, inquests and inquiries. He is particularly apt at dealing with vulnerable witnesses, having completed the vulnerable witness training course. John was awarded an advocacy scholarship for the Bar Course, along with a merit-based scholarship from the Honourable Society of the Middle Temple.

John has developed a notable family law practice. He frequently appears in family courts across the country, specialising in private law children disputes and financial remedies. He is often instructed in cases of a particularly sensitive nature including cases involving allegations of rape and parental alienation. 

John was also instructed by a leading city law firm on behalf of a Core Participant in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. He was involved in this high profile and sensitive case for approximately one year, during which time he drafted detailed written documents regarding the evidence in the Inquiry.