Ricky practises exclusively in family law. He is known for his expertise in Children Act proceedings. He appears at all levels of the Family Court and in the Family Division of the High Court.
Ricky acts in both private law and public law proceedings. He has experience of cases involving
• Parental alienation and implacable hostility;
• Domestic and sexual abuse;
• Inflicted injuries to children;
• Jurisdictional disputes; and
• Public interest immunity.
Private Law Children
Ricky is frequently instructed in private law children disputes by parents, family members and children.
Ricky’s private law cases range from those with no safeguarding issues to those involving allegations of significant harm.
These cases include applications for child arrangements orders, specific issue orders, prohibited steps orders, enforcement orders and special guardianship orders.
Ricky’s cases have also included disputes around:
- Living arrangements;
- Contact;
- Schooling;
- Internal relocation;
- Temporary removal from the United Kingdom (to both Hague and non-Hague convention countries); and
- Citizenship.
Public Law Children
Ricky is regularly instructed in care proceedings and acts at all stages of proceedings. He represents local authorities, parents, interveners, and children.
Ricky has been instructed in cases involving the inherent jurisdiction, wardship and deprivation of liberty.
Ricky also has experience of contested Adoption Act proceedings both at the permission stage and where parents have been given permission to oppose an adoption order.
Other areas of family law
Ricky also accepts instructions in relation to applications for non-molestation orders and female genital mutilation protection orders.
Other experience
Ricky sits on No5’s pupillage committee and on YRes West Midlands committee.
Previous experience
Prior to joining No5, Ricky was a paralegal and junior fee earner at Hornby and Levy Solicitors in Brixton, South London specialising in all areas of family law.
Published cases
Re P (Sexual Abuse: Finding of Fact Hearing) [2019] EWFC 27: Ricky represented one of the children (by their guardian) in this 17-week finding of fact hearing into allegations of serial intra-familial and inter-familial child sexual abuse.
Re A & B (Children) (Contested Adoption) [2022] EWFC 17: Ricky represented the local authority in a contested application for an adoption order where the parents had already been given permission to oppose the making of an adoption order.
Other notable cases
Re NQ: Ricky represented a mother at a three day final hearing who was seeking to vary an existing child arrangements order and to defend an application for an enforcement order.
Re RU: Ricky represented a father in linked private law proceedings and public law proceedings (where the father was an intervener). This included a ten-day finding of fact hearing where the father was alleged to be a potential perpetrator of an inflicted injury to a child.
Re LB: Ricky represented the child (by their guardian) in complex and lengthy proceedings involving allegations of significant emotional harm and parental alienation. Ricky’s involvement covered private law proceedings, appeal proceedings and public law proceedings. He represented the child at over nine hearings including a four-day private law final hearing, an appeal hearing and a four-day interim care order hearing.
Re OS: Ricky represented the child (by their guardian) in public law proceedings and proceedings under the inherent jurisdiction. The case concerned the steps to be taken where a child subject to an interim care order had been abducted abroad.
Re VX: Ricky represented two children (by their guardian) in an application for female genital mutilation protection orders. He represented the children at six hearings including a Re W hearing, a six-day finding of fact hearing and a three-day final hearing.
Re RP: Ricky represented the local authority in a six day finding of fact hearing into allegations of serious physical abuse and beatings by the parents.
Memberships
Inner Temple
Midland Circuit
Family Law Bar Association
Resolution
Association of Lawyers for Children
Qualifications
Bar Professional Training Course (Outstanding; College of Law)
LLB in Law with European Legal Studies (First Class Honours; King’s College London)
Associateship of King’s College London
