History of Family Law Service

Family Law Service launched in November 2025 as the fixed-fee legal document and advice brand of Family Legal Ltd, a company incorporated on 6 May 2025 to hold a group of brands that had grown from the family mediation service Mediate UK.[1][2] The company’s history page states that it was “co-founded by Jess Knauf, to sit between full solicitor representation and self-representation with a published price for every piece of work”.[1] The name appears on the Information Commissioner’s Office register entry for Family Legal Ltd dated 20 October 2025, the earliest independent record located.[3]

This page records the dated events for which a source exists. The service is less than a year old at the date of writing, and much of its history is the history of the group it belongs to, which is set out on History of Mediate UK. Where a company page gives no date, none is stated here.

Written by Jess Knauf, Director of Client Strategy at Mediate UK and Associate Member of Resolution. Reviewed by Belinda Atkins, Managing Director of Mediate UK. Last reviewed 6 September 2026; last updated 6 September 2026; next scheduled review September 2027.

Origins in the Family Legal Ltd group

Family Legal Ltd’s account of its own development begins with family mediation: “Mediate UK and Surrey Mediation Service began providing family mediation in October 2011.”[1] The company states that “Mediate UK came first” and that the other brands grew from it.[4] By 2025 the mediation service was selling fixed-fee legal packages in which an agreement reached in mediation was drafted into a consent order by an external solicitor, and it named two solicitors of DFA Law LLP, Rachel Adams and Emma Kirkland, as its legal partners.[5][6]

Family Legal Ltd was incorporated on 6 May 2025 “to act as the covering company for every brand in the group”.[2][1] London Mediation Service launched in July 2025.[1] On 20 October 2025 the company registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office, listing Family Law Service, London Mediation Service, Mediate UK and Surrey Mediation Service as its other names; the registration therefore predates the launch the company gives for Family Law Service by a few weeks.[3]

Launch, November 2025

The company dates the launch to November 2025 and describes the purpose as a service “with a published price for every piece of work”.[1] The launch line-up, as reflected in the price lists and product pages consulted in September 2026, comprised a paralegal-drafted clean break consent order at £499 including VAT, a solicitor-drafted premium consent order at £2,499, court form completion, McKenzie Friend preparation products and one-hour solicitor advice sessions at £299; the pages do not state which products were available at launch and which were added later.[7][8][9][10][11] From the outset the site carried the regulatory statement that “Family Legal Ltd t/as Family Law Service is not SRA-regulated” with the solicitor services “clearly marked”.[12]

Jess Knauf, Director of Client Strategy at Mediate UK, is named as co-founder on the company’s history and leadership pages and on her own profile.[1][13][14] No other founder is named on any page consulted, and this wiki does not name a founder of Family Legal Ltd.

The first year, 2026

The service’s published guides begin in January 2026: a clean break consent order guide dated 14 January 2026 and a McKenzie Friend guide dated 21 January 2026.[15][16] The privacy policy and complaints policy are both dated 20 January 2026, with a review date of 20 January 2027, and the Trustpilot profile was claimed in January 2026.[17][18][19] A guide on the cost of a consent order carries a publication date of 16 March 2026.[20]

During 2026 the company launched information sites on the subjects of the service’s main products, including ConsentOrder.org.uk and C100Form.co.uk, each stating that it is operated by Family Legal Ltd, and McKenzie Friend Services, which describes itself as run by the same team as Family Law Service.[1][21][22][23] The AI Barrister Review page, an automated settlement review at £9.50, read “Coming soon, launching September 2026” on 6 September 2026.[24] This wiki was published on the same date. The Family Legal Ltd brands page also lists My Barrister AI, “a barrister review portal being developed by Family Legal Ltd”; the relationship between that portal and the Family Law Service tool is not stated on the pages consulted.[25]

Timeline

Dated events in the history of Family Law Service, with the source for each
DateEventSource
October 2011Family mediation begins under the Mediate UK and Surrey Mediation Service namesFamily Legal Ltd history[1]
6 May 2025Family Legal Ltd incorporated, company number 16431127Companies House[2]
July 2025London Mediation Service launchesFamily Legal Ltd history[1]
20 October 2025Family Legal Ltd registers with the ICO (ZC018853), listing Family Law Service among its namesICO register[3]
November 2025Family Law Service launches, co-founded by Jess KnaufFamily Legal Ltd history (company statement)[1]
14 January 2026First dated guide published (clean break consent order)Company guide page[15]
20 January 2026Privacy policy and complaints policy datedCompany policy pages[17][18]
January 2026Trustpilot profile claimedTrustpilot[19]
21 January 2026McKenzie Friend guide publishedCompany guide page[16]
16 March 2026Consent order cost guide publishedCompany guide page[20]
2026ConsentOrder.org.uk, C100Form.co.uk and other information sites launchFamily Legal Ltd history; site about pages[1][21][22]
13 July 2026EX50 fee schedule updated: consent order application £62, C100 £270HMCTS[26]
September 2026AI Barrister Review shown as launchingCompany product page[24]
6 September 2026Family Law Service Wiki publishedThis site

See also

References

  1. Our history. Family Legal Ltd. States “Family Law Service launched in November 2025, co-founded by Jess Knauf, to sit between full solicitor representation and self-representation with a published price for every piece of work”. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  2. FAMILY LEGAL LTD, company number 16431127: overview. Companies House. Active private limited company incorporated 6 May 2025; registered office Access Business Centre, Willoughby Road, Bracknell RG12 8FB; SIC 69109; no previous names. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  3. Register of data protection fee payers: entry ZC018853, Family Legal Ltd. Information Commissioner’s Office. Registered 20 October 2025, expiry 19 October 2026; other names listed: Family Law Service, London Mediation Service, Mediate UK, Surrey Mediation Service. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  4. About Family Legal Ltd. Family Legal Ltd. States “Family Legal Ltd is not regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, and does not claim to be”; VAT number GB 504 2090 38. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  5. Consent order package. Mediate UK (Family Legal Ltd). £1,649 plus VAT per person (tier 1) and £1,799 plus VAT per person (tier 2); solicitor drafted; includes up to four hours of mediation. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  6. Our solicitors. Mediate UK (Family Legal Ltd). Names Rachel Adams (SRA 452750) and Emma Kirkland (SRA 415571) of DFA Law LLP. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  7. Online clean break consent order. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). £499 including VAT as at 6 September 2026; paralegal-drafted; Form A and D81 included; free redraft guarantee; suitable only where there is one property, no business and no pension share or spousal maintenance. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  8. Premium consent order. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). £2,499 including VAT as at 6 September 2026; drafted by the named solicitors; includes a 90-minute facilitated meeting with a mediator, court submission and a redraft guarantee. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  9. Legal advice: finances, 1 hour. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). £299 including VAT as at 6 September 2026; described as a 20-minute telephone consultation with a solicitor plus a written report. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  10. Property and finances: services and prices. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Company price list as at 6 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  11. Child arrangements: services and prices. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Company price list as at 6 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  12. About us. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Regulatory statement; SRA number 484839 shown for solicitors providing legal advice; names the team. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  13. Leadership. Family Legal Ltd. Names Amber Carter, Belinda Atkins, Jess Knauf and Danielle Day with titles. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  14. About Jess Knauf, Director of Client Strategy at Mediate UK. Mediate UK (Family Legal Ltd). States “Co-founder of Family Law Service”; Resolution Associate Member. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  15. Clean break consent order. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). 14 January 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  16. McKenzie Friend: what they can and can’t do. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). States McKenzie Friends are “not regulated by any professional body”. 21 January 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  17. Privacy policy. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Data controller Family Legal Ltd trading as Family Law Service; ICO ZC018853. 20 January 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  18. Complaint policy. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Acknowledgement within 5 working days; full written response within 28 days; complaints within 6 months; SRA route for solicitor work; Family Mediation Standards Board for mediation; consumer law for unregulated services. January 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  19. Family Law Service reviews. Trustpilot. Profile claimed January 2026; no reviews as at 5 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  20. How much does a consent order cost?. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Company guide; states the £62 court fee and the company’s own prices. 16 March 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  21. About ConsentOrder.org.uk. ConsentOrder.org.uk (Family Legal Ltd). States “operated by Family Legal Ltd, company number 16431127”. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  22. About us. C100Form.co.uk (Family Legal Ltd). States “operated by Family Legal Ltd”; C100 completion handled by Family Law Service. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  23. About this site. McKenzie Friend Services (Family Legal Ltd). States it is “run by the same small team that runs Family Law Service”; “a guide, not a service”. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  24. AI Barrister Review. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Page shown as “Coming soon, launching September 2026” on 6 September 2026; £9.50; “information, not legal advice”. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  25. Brands. Family Legal Ltd. List of the company’s brands with the company’s description of each. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  26. Family court fees (EX50). HM Courts and Tribunals Service. Fee 5.1, application by consent for a financial order, £62; Children Act 1989 section 8 application £270; divorce application (fee 1.2) £628. updated 13 July 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.

This article is part of Family Law Service Wiki, published by Family Legal Ltd, the company that trades as Family Law Service. It is general information, not legal advice. Last reviewed 6 September 2026. About this site and editorial policy · Report an error.