What can I do for you
Rose-Marie is a leading specialist in family and children law and leads the firm’s fertility law team. She is highly regarded for her expertise on modern families and she regularly advises on complex issues relating to legal parentage, parental responsibility and arrangements for children. Her practice spans a wide range of matters including co-parenting arrangements, donor conception, UK and international surrogacy, use of embryos on separation, child arrangements orders and relocation applications.
Her work also includes advising clients on financial issues arising from co-parenting arrangements and donor conception, divorce or separation as well as wealth protection through cohabitation and pre and post-nuptial agreements.
Supporting your ambitions
Rose-Marie acts in complex cases and her reported case highlights include acting for:
- The father in the Court of Appeal case Re M-A successfully defending the mother’s appeal against an order for the child to relocate to live with the father abroad;
- The surrogate mother in Re F v M v SM where the intended parents had separated prior to the child’s birth;
- The birth mother in Re C (Declaration of Parentage), a complex case involving a same-sex couple who conceived using a donor at a licenced fertility clinic but where the only written consent to legal parentage had been signed prior to the law changing to permit two women to both be legal parents;
- The intended parents in R & Anor v A & Anor in which the surrogate had suffered a brain injury and was unable to consent to the making of a parental order.
Rose-Marie is a trained collaborative lawyer and is experienced in helping her clients to resolve matters outside of court wherever possible. This allows her clients to reach a solution that works for their individual family and which maintains their privacy over sensitive issues.
What do others say
Rose-Marie is recognised by Legal 500 as a leading associate and Chambers and Partners as Up and Coming. She is described as “incredibly talented”. She is known for her expertise in surrogacy and fertility law as “among the most experienced and knowledgeable lawyers who specialise in this area”. She won Associate of the Year at the Family Law Awards 2019 in recognition of her expertise in fertility and surrogacy law.
What else should you know
Rose-Marie is a member of Resolution a group of family practitioners committed to resolving matters using a constructive and amicable approach wherever possible. She is a committee member of Manchester Resolution and Resolution’s national children committee. She regularly speaks at international and UK conferences on issues relating to fertility law.
Rose-Marie loves the outdoors and can often be found walking in the Peak District.