Our offices will be closed for the late May bank holiday on Monday 26th May, reopening at 9.00am on Tuesday 27th May. Wishing all of our clients and local community, a pleasant long weekend.
In celebration of National Walking Month and Mental Health Awareness Week week, we took a sunny lunchtime bimble to recharge, reconnect, and enjoy some fresh air!
There’s nothing like a gentle walk and great company to lift the spirits. Let’s keep making space for wellbeing – one step at a time.
#NationalWalkingMonth#MentalHealthAwarenessWeek#WellbeingAtWork#MindfulMoments#LunchtimeWalks#TeamSR#GoGreen#Teignmouth#NewtonAbbot
Our offices will be closed for the Early May Bank holiday on Monday 5th May, reopening at 9.00am on Tuesday 6th May. Wishing all of our clients and local community, a pleasant long weekend.
Our offices will be closed from Friday 18th – Monday 21st April for the Easter Bank Holiday weekend. We will reopen from 9.00am on Tuesday 22nd April.
Wishing our clients & local community, a relaxing and joyful Easter weekend.
A huge thank you to everyone who dropped into our offices, their Christmas chocolate tubs! 
They were collected by DCW Polymers last week as part of their Recycle & Raise scheme, helping to support Dartmoor Zoological Society & Life Chance TRUST. 
Your contributions will make a real difference—both for the environment and for these amazing charities! 
Pictured: Receptionist, Amanda Yates, and Assistants, Emma Jewell, Ivantony Browne & Amanda Johnson with our chocolate tub stacks; Heroes were the clear winner!
Raising a congratulatory toast to Private Client Executive, Joanne Osborne!
Jo has been a dedicated, valued and hard-working part of Team SR for an incredible 20 years this month!
Jo joined Scott Richards Solicitors in 2005 as an assistant in the Family department, originally based at our Dawlish office. In 2008, she moved to Teignmouth, and joined the Private Client department following the closure of our Dawlish office.
As a result of her hard work, Jo then undertook a Level 3 Advanced Diploma in Paralegal Studies, and was promoted to Paralegal in 2017.
Since then, Jo has continued to climb the legal career ladder and develop her legal knowledge. She is now a Private Client Executive, specialising in Wills, LPAs and Probate work and amazingly, is also undertaking further studies to gain her Solicitor qualification.
Thanks for everything you do, Jo; and here’s to many more 
Ps. Sorry, we had to drag up an old photo or two! 
Exciting News!
We are thrilled to announce that Oliver Johnstone will officially be admitted as a solicitor this month!
Ollie has always had a keen interest in law, and studied for his undergraduate degree at the University of Bristol, before achieving his masters in Law, Business and Management at the University of Law, Exeter.
Ollie has shown exceptional talent and dedication throughout his education, excelling in every seat during his two-year training contract. Now, he embarks on the next chapter of his career as a solicitor in our Commercial Property Department.
Ollie shared:
“I am incredibly grateful for the support I’ve received throughout my training and I am excited to join the Commercial Property team. I look forward to contributing further to the firm and helping our clients achieve their goals.”
Please join us in congratulating Ollie on this amazing achievement! 
We a looking for additional support staff in the following departments:
1) Commercial Property
2) Residential Property
Do you possess excellent communication, IT, and customer service skills and enjoy working within a team environment? If so, you could be just the person we are looking for to join our 29 hour, 4-day a week SR support team.
Due to internal staff progression, we require an 2 additional Legal Assistants – one in our Commercial Property team and the other in our Residential Property team. Our Legal Assistants are instrumental when it comes to client service by taking varied client enquiries, making appointments as required and ensuring that we deliver the best experience to our clients – something we all pride ourselves on. As a valued member of our admin support team, each Assistant will deal with the administrative aspects of property sales, purchases and transfers, from start to finish, for the relevant property team.
Effective admin support ensures that our Solicitors and Paralegals can progress their client matters from file openings through to completion and closure. Work is frequently progressed through Diktamen dictations combined with general file management, legal compliance, and working efficiently within our Leap case management system – all of which can be learnt on the job.
With a willingness to learn, we hope that the right candidate for each dedicated team can bring their accurate typing skills, amazing attention to detail, and a high standard of grammar, spelling, and punctuation with them. Having a sense of humour, being a multi-tasker and able to work to deadlines would be the icing on the cake!
Do you have previous legal experience that you could bring to this role, or perhaps you would like to make a complete change from your current non-legal position? Either way, we will provide ongoing SR training to the successful candidates.
If you feel either of these roles could be right for you, please forward an up-to-date CV with a covering letter confirming which role you are applying for. If possible, please include a short summary about yourself and what you feel we could offer you as an SR employee. Send all of this to Lindsey McIntyre, HR Manager (lm@scottrichards.co.uk).
If you have any questions about the role, please do give Lindsey a call on 01626 772441.
Closing Date: Sunday 15th September 2024 (6pm)
Interview Date: Monday 30th September 2024 (no other dates available)
Job Types: Full-time, Permanent
Pay: From £21,500.00 per year
Benefits:
Schedule:
Work Location: In person
Application deadline: 15/09/2024
Reference ID: Secretarial Support – Commercial Property / Secretarial Support – Residential Property
Expected start date: 04/11/2024
Injunctions are a powerful tool which play a paramount role in protecting people in abusive, coercive and harassing relationships, whether that be involving a partner or family member.
What is an injunction?
In simple terms, an injunction restricts someone from doing something. When applied to a family law setting, an injunction is utilised to prevent the opportunity for harm to be inflicted on another party. The threshold to be satisfied for an injunction to be granted is high as the powers under the injunction are greatly restrictive. For example, injunctions can dictate who can live in a property and failure to abide by the injunction could result in a criminal conviction.
Types of Injunction
There are two main types of injunction available to an individual who fears a real prospect of harm or has been harmed by another party. The two injunctions which will be the focus of this article are a Non-Molestation Order and an Occupation Order. The two mentioned types of injunction both require an application to be made by an individual to protect them (the applicant) and any children from abuse/harassment by a named person. If protection is required immediately due to the possibility of imminent harm, an application for an emergency order can be made which is known as a ‘without notice’ or ‘ex-parte’ application; the person who is threatening harm (the respondent) will not be provided with notice at the outset of the application in this scenario.
A non-molestation order can prohibit someone from contacting the applicant by any means. The order may also include preventative measures such as stopping the named individual from coming within a certain distance of the applicant’s home or place of work. The purpose of such an injunction is to prevent the aggressive party from threatening/using physical violence, harassment, intimidation etc. The order can also prevent the aggressor from contacting the applicant through third parties.
An occupation order allows the court to determine who is to live in a property or specify what parts of a property each party is to reside in. The occupation order may also stipulate who is responsible for payment of utilities, mortgage repayments etc.
Requirements to Obtain the Injunction
Orders for the injunctions mentioned can be difficult to obtain. A successful application will place a restriction upon the respondent party for a fixed period. This is certainly apparent with an occupation order which may order the respondent party to leave their property. Consequently, the requirements to obtain the injunctions are stringent.
Requirements for a Non-Molestation Order
To apply for a non-molestation order, the respondent must be an ‘associated person’ under the Family Law Act 1996. An associated person is most commonly a partner but can be any of the following: a spouse, civil partner, cohabitant/former cohabitant, relative, in-law, party to the same family proceeding, parent to your child etc. There is a wide range of individuals who fall into the category of ‘associated persons.’
The main consideration for the court when considering an application is to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of the applicant and any children involved as referred to in Section 42 of the Family Law Act 1996. Therefore, providing evidence detailing any violence, threat of violence, intimidation, harassment etc. can be valuable proof to help the court reach a decision.
When deciding if to grant an order, the court will consider all your circumstances, primarily the need to secure the health, safety and well-being of you and any children as mentioned previously. Evidence of abusive text messages/emails along with photos of any injuries or damage to property will strengthen your case. The court needs to be satisfied that the applicant requires protection given the actions and potential future actions of the associated person. The court is afforded great discretion in deciding the terms of the order which is an advantage of the injunction; the order can be tailored to the individual needs and protections of the applicant.
A non-molestation order will be granted for a given period of time and then the applicant will need to apply for an extension if still required.
Requirements for an Occupation Order
A non-molestation order is invaluable in protecting an individual from harm, but it cannot be used to address who should be allowed to occupy the family home. In this situation, an occupation order is required. It is difficult to satisfy the requirements of the court to grant an occupation order given the fact that an occupation order may deprive an individual from asserting their legal right to accessing their property. Therefore, the court must agree that the applicant will suffer harm/harassment if such an order is not granted. Whilst an occupation order may stipulate who is to reside in the home, it does not alter the legal ownership of the property.
For an order to be granted, the court must be content that the applicant has a right to occupy the property in question. The property must be the ‘home’ of both the applicant and the respondent, and the respondent must be an ‘associated person’, as discussed in relation to non-molestation orders. The court will also consider the practicalities involved with granting such an order such as the availability of alternative accommodation, the needs/finances of the parties involved and the emotional, mental and physical impact such an order will have on any children involved.
Summary
Whilst injunctions can be a powerful mechanism to ensure the safety of an individual from another associated party, injunctions should not be used as a substitute for police involvement. If an individual feels in immediate danger, please always contact the police as a first course of action.
Courts can be flexible in the use of injunctions which enables the orders to be tailored to the individual circumstances of the applicant. Therefore, injunctions have a strong role in the protection of individuals from harm. However, the strict tests applied to injunction applications must be remembered; the restrictive and potentially depriving nature of injunctions means the evidence required to obtain an order are high and reserved for situations where there has been harm or harassment or there is a real prospect of such harm arising.
If you would like further information regarding injunctions and the support available for individuals who are experiencing abuse from an associated person, please feel free to contact us. Our Family Law team would be happy to assist: 01626 772441, law@scottrichards.co.uk.
Our offices will be closed for the Summer Bank Holiday from 5.00pm this Friday 23rd August, and will reopen at 9.00am, Tuesday 27th August.
Wishing you all a pleasant bank holiday weekend 🤓
