Family Law Service: regulation and professional standards

Family Law Service is not regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Its website states, in the footer of every page: “Family Legal Ltd t/as Family Law Service is not SRA-regulated. We do offer both SRA-regulated solicitor services (clearly marked) and unregulated legal information & document services that exclude reserved legal activities.”[1][2] The solicitor services are delivered by two solicitors of DFA Law LLP, a firm regulated by the SRA under number 484839; the paralegal drafting, court form completion, preparation meetings, McKenzie Friend support and automated review tool are unregulated legal services.[3][4][5][2]

The position is lawful. The Legal Services Act 2007 reserves six activities to authorised persons and leaves everything else, including drafting documents and giving legal advice, open to anyone.[6][7] What differs between the two halves of the service is the set of protections a client has if something goes wrong: the Legal Ombudsman, the SRA Compensation Fund and compulsory professional indemnity insurance apply to the solicitor work and not to the rest.[8][9][10] This page sets out, service by service, what is regulated, what is not, and what a client does and does not have in each case.

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 March 2027.

The company’s stated position

The company makes three statements. On its own site: “Family Legal Ltd t/as Family Law Service is not SRA-regulated. We do offer both SRA-regulated solicitor services (clearly marked) and unregulated legal information & document services that exclude reserved legal activities.” and “Solicitors providing legal advice are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)”, with the SRA number 484839.[2] On the group site: “Family Legal Ltd is not regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, and does not claim to be”, “Family Legal Ltd is not itself a firm of solicitors”, and “Where work is carried out by a solicitor or a barrister, that professional remains subject to their own regulator.”[11][12][13] The number 484839 is the SRA number of DFA Law LLP, a licensed body in Northampton authorised for all legal services since 1 April 2021; it is not a number belonging to Family Legal Ltd or Family Law Service.[3][14]

This wiki adopts the following formulation throughout: Family Law Service is not itself regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority; its paralegal drafting and McKenzie Friend work is unregulated, and the solicitor advice it arranges is delivered by solicitors of an SRA-regulated firm. Family Law Service is never described here as a law firm, as regulated, or as “SRA-registered”.

Reserved legal activities

Section 12(1) of the Legal Services Act 2007 lists the reserved legal activities: “(a) the exercise of a right of audience; (b) the conduct of litigation; (c) reserved instrument activities; (d) probate activities; (e) notarial activities; (f) the administration of oaths.”[6] Schedule 2 defines a right of audience as “the right to appear before and address a court, including the right to call and examine witnesses”, and the conduct of litigation as “the issuing of proceedings before any court in England and Wales”, “the commencement, prosecution and defence of such proceedings” and “the performance of any ancillary functions in relation to such proceedings”.[7] Section 14 makes it an offence for a person to carry on a reserved legal activity unless entitled to do so, with a maximum of two years’ imprisonment on indictment.[15]

Giving legal advice, drafting a document for a client to sign and file, filling in a court form on a client’s instructions and explaining court procedure are not reserved activities. The Competition and Markets Authority’s guidance on unregulated legal services, updated 30 January 2026, confirms that businesses that are not authorised may lawfully provide such services, giving online divorce form completion as an example, and that they remain bound by consumer protection law.[9] The Legal Services Board’s research identifies family law, McKenzie Friends and paralegal services among the areas in which unregulated providers operate.[16] The boundary that an unregulated provider must not cross is the issuing and conduct of proceedings in its own name for the client, and addressing the court; Family Law Service’s pages state that its unregulated services “exclude reserved legal activities” and that a McKenzie Friend cannot “conduct litigation” or “address the court”.[2][17]

What is regulated and what is not, by service

Regulatory position of each Family Law Service product, as at 6 September 2026
ServiceWho delivers it (company statement)Regulatory positionSource
Legal advice, one hour (finances or children), £299Rachel Adams and Emma Kirkland, solicitorsRegulated: the solicitors practise at DFA Law LLP (SRA 484839)[18][4][5]
Premium consent order, £2,499Rachel Adams and Emma Kirkland, solicitors; includes court submissionRegulated, as above[19][3]
Online clean break consent order, £499Paralegal (Lee Simons and Lucy Noord-Harper named)Unregulated[20]
Form C100, £240; C100 and Cafcass preparation, £350Karen Hamilton and Lisa Huddleston, McKenzie FriendsUnregulated[21][22]
Other form completion (C1A, C2, Form A, Form E, FL401)Not stated on the price listUnregulated document service[23][24]
Preparation meetings, position statements, case review, TOLATA supportNot stated on the price listUnregulated[23][24]
AI Barrister Review, £9.50Automated; “not by a barrister”Unregulated; “information, not legal advice”[25]

The company’s price lists for property and finances and for child arrangements, as consulted for this article, do not label each line with its regulatory status; the status must be inferred from the product page, which names the person delivering the work, and from the footer statement.[23][24][2] The SRA’s guidance for solicitors working with unregulated organisations expects clients to be told “which services are provided by others, and whether those persons are authorised or not”, and whether work is covered by professional indemnity insurance.[10]

Client protections by service type

A client who buys a solicitor advice session or the premium consent order is a client of a solicitor at an SRA-regulated firm for that work. The SRA Standards and Regulations apply to the solicitor, the firm must carry professional indemnity insurance, the SRA Compensation Fund is available in the circumstances the SRA sets, and a service complaint that the firm does not resolve can go to the Legal Ombudsman.[26][8][10] A client who buys the £499 consent order, a completed court form, a preparation meeting or the automated review buys from an unregulated provider. The Legal Ombudsman states: “We can only help if your legal service provider is regulated.”[8] The Compensation Fund and compulsory indemnity insurance do not apply, and the client’s remedies are those of consumer law: the Consumer Rights Act 2015 requirement of reasonable care and skill, the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 and the unfair commercial practices rules now in the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024.[9]

Protections available to a Family Law Service client, by service type
ProtectionSolicitor advice and premium consent orderParalegal, McKenzie Friend and automated products
Professional regulator with conduct rulesYes: SRA (firm 484839)[3]No[2]
Legal Ombudsman for service complaintsYes[8]No[8]
SRA Compensation FundYes, where the fund’s rules are met[26]No[9]
Compulsory professional indemnity insuranceYes, at firm level[10]Not required; none stated on the pages consulted[9]
Consumer Rights Act 2015 and consumer regulationsYes[9]Yes[9]
Data protection (UK GDPR, ICO)Yes: DFA Law LLP and Family Legal Ltd[27]Yes: Family Legal Ltd, ICO ZC018853[28][27]
Internal complaints procedureYes; then SRA for conduct[29]Yes; then consumer law[29]

The practical consequence is described on Unbundled legal services on Family Law Wiki: the client carries the responsibility for the case as a whole and for checking that the piece of work bought fits it. For a consent order, the court’s own scrutiny under section 25 of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 remains, whoever drafted the document; the D81 statement asks each party whether they have received legal advice, and a paralegal-drafted order is submitted without it unless a separate advice session has been bought.[20][30]

McKenzie Friends and the court

A McKenzie Friend has no professional status. The Practice Guidance issued by the Master of the Rolls and the President of the Family Division on 12 July 2010 states that a McKenzie Friend may “provide moral support for litigants; take notes; help with case papers; quietly give advice on any aspect of the conduct of the case”, and may not “act as the litigants’ agent in relation to the proceedings; manage litigants’ cases outside court, for example by signing court documents; or address the court, make oral submissions or examine witnesses”.[31] A right of audience or the conduct of litigation may be granted only by the court, case by case, and the guidance says courts should be “slow to grant” them.[31] Paragraph 27 confirms that litigants “can enter into lawful agreements to pay fees” to McKenzie Friends for reasonable assistance in or out of court, though such fees are not recoverable from the other party.[31]

Family Law Service’s McKenzie Friend products, as listed on 6 September 2026, are preparation products: completion of the C100, a Cafcass interview preparation session, court preparation meetings and case reviews. No product for attendance at a hearing appeared on the price lists consulted, and the company’s own guide states that McKenzie Friends are “not regulated by any professional body” and typically lack professional indemnity insurance.[24][23][17] The rules of the family court on litigants in person, position statements and permission for a McKenzie Friend to speak are on Litigant in person and Position statement.

Complaints

The company’s complaints policy, last updated in January 2026, requires complaints within six months of the service, acknowledges them within five working days, investigates through a senior team member not involved in the matter where possible, and aims to give a full written response within 28 days.[29] After the internal procedure, complaints about legal advice or consent orders provided by a solicitor may be taken to the SRA, which the policy notes does “not usually resolve fee disputes but may investigate issues relating to professional conduct”; complaints about mediation go to the Family Mediation Standards Board; and for the unregulated services, “clean-break consent orders, document completion, case reviews” and similar, the policy refers the client to “your statutory consumer rights under UK consumer law” and alternative dispute resolution where applicable.[29] The policy does not mention the Legal Ombudsman. A client of the solicitor work has that route through DFA Law LLP’s own complaints procedure as an SRA-regulated firm, independently of Family Law Service’s policy.[8][3]

Family Legal Ltd’s governance page states that “complaints about a service are handled by the brand that provided it”.[12] The group and its brands are registered with the Information Commissioner under ZC018853, and complaints about personal data may be made to the ICO.[28][27]

Insurance

DFA Law LLP, as an SRA-regulated firm, must hold professional indemnity insurance meeting the SRA’s minimum terms, and its solicitors’ work for Family Law Service clients is done within that regime.[3][10] For the unregulated services, no statement about professional indemnity insurance was found on the Family Law Service home, about, product, privacy or complaints pages, or on the Family Legal Ltd governance page, consulted on 6 September 2026.[1][2][29][12] The absence of a statement is not a statement that there is no cover; the SRA guidance cited above expects clients to be told the position on request, and a prospective client may ask.[10]

Consumer law and the regulators’ view

The CMA guidance states that “it is important that businesses providing unregulated legal services do not lead consumers to believe that their activities are regulated or approved by a regulator”, and expects providers to explain whether they are regulated, what qualifications their staff hold and what redress is available.[9] The Legal Services Board’s research found benefits in the unregulated sector, including “more transparent (and potentially more affordable) pricing” and a higher rate of service innovation, alongside detriments including “higher than expected costs, unreasonable delays, and poor advice” and no access to the Legal Ombudsman.[16][32] Family Law Service publishes a fixed price for every product and a regulatory statement on every page; it names the individuals who deliver each product on the product page rather than on the price list, and it does not state on the pages consulted whether its unregulated work is insured.[1][2][23]

Readers can check any solicitor or firm on the Solicitors Register, and what each kind of family law professional is regulated by on Family law professionals on Family Law Wiki.[26]

See also

References

  1. Fixed fee family law and divorce help. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Company home page; footer regulatory statement; telephone 0333 339 5505; ICO ZC018853; “All prices include VAT”; describes Jess Knauf as “our co-founder”. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  2. 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.
  3. Solicitors Register: DFA Law LLP, SRA number 484839. Solicitors Regulation Authority. Licensed body since 1 April 2021, authorised for all legal services; head office 2 Waterside Way, Northampton NN4 7XD; no published decisions. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  4. Solicitors Register: Rachel Elizabeth Adams, SRA number 452750. Solicitors Regulation Authority. Solicitor admitted 1 September 2010; practising certificate from 1 November 2025; DFA Law LLP. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  5. Solicitors Register: Emma Suzanne Kirkland, SRA number 415571. Solicitors Regulation Authority. Solicitor admitted 16 April 2012; practising certificate from 1 November 2025; DFA Law LLP. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  6. Legal Services Act 2007, section 12: meaning of reserved legal activity. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  7. Legal Services Act 2007, Schedule 2: the reserved legal activities. legislation.gov.uk. Paragraph 3 (right of audience) and paragraph 4 (conduct of litigation). Accessed 5 September 2026.
  8. Complaints we can help with. Legal Ombudsman. States “We can only help if your legal service provider is regulated”. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  9. Unregulated legal services: consumer protection law guidance. Competition and Markets Authority. updated 30 January 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  10. Unregulated organisations: giving information to clients. Solicitors Regulation Authority. Guidance for solicitors working in unregulated organisations on telling clients which protections do not apply. updated 25 November 2019. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  11. 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.
  12. Standards and governance. Family Legal Ltd. States “Family Legal Ltd is not itself a firm of solicitors” and that complaints are handled by the brand that provided the service. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  13. Family Legal Ltd. Family Legal Ltd. Footer: “Family Legal Ltd is not regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Where work is carried out by a solicitor or a barrister, that professional remains subject to their own regulator.”. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  14. DFA Law LLP. DFA Law LLP. Firm website; Northampton; states it is authorised and regulated by the SRA, number 484839; names Rachel Adams as head of the family team. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  15. Legal Services Act 2007, section 14: offence to carry on a reserved legal activity if not entitled. legislation.gov.uk. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  16. Mapping unregulated legal services. Legal Services Board. Research summary; identifies family law, McKenzie Friends and paralegal services among areas with unregulated providers. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  17. 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.
  18. 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.
  19. 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.
  20. 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.
  21. Form C100. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). £240 including VAT as at 6 September 2026; completed by the named McKenzie Friends. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  22. Form C100 and Cafcass prep package. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). £350 including VAT as at 6 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  23. Property and finances: services and prices. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Company price list as at 6 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  24. Child arrangements: services and prices. Family Law Service (Family Legal Ltd). Company price list as at 6 September 2026. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  25. 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.
  26. Solicitors Register. Solicitors Regulation Authority. Public search for regulated firms and individuals. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  27. 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.
  28. 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.
  29. 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.
  30. 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.
  31. Practice Guidance: McKenzie Friends (Civil and Family Courts). Master of the Rolls and President of the Family Division. 12 July 2010. Accessed 5 September 2026.
  32. LSB research on unregulated legal services reveals potential consumer benefits and detriments. Legal Services Board. 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.