David at a glance
- English solicitor (1978 and accredited 1996),
- Mediator (1997 and accredited 1999),
- Family arbitrator and Member Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (MICArb) (2001),
- Deputy District Judge sitting at the Central Family Court, London (1995)
- Australian (NSW) solicitor and barrister (2003) and mediator
- Visiting Professor, University of Law (2015)
- Honourary Professor, Leicester University (2017)
I am a highly experienced family law dispute resolution specialist, especially involving an international element or complex assets or issues.
I am joint founder (2007) and a partner at iFLG.
Achievements
I was appointed OBE in Queens Birthday Honours List, June 2014, for services “to international family law“.
I was appointed in 2022 a KC(Hons) for work in improving English law and practice
I believe I am one of the world’s leading family lawyers and I am (apparently) regarded as one of the most innovative family lawyers of my generation:
- I was the originator and a creator of family arbitration in England and Wales, now emulated in other countries
- I was instrumental in the 1990s in the creation of the English Family Law Accreditation Scheme
- I was co-founder in 1995 of the world’s first multi-disciplinary metropolitan family law practice, combining lawyers, mediators and counsellors, and now much copied around the world
- I was co-founder in 2007 of the world’s first law firm dedicated to international families and their children, with many law firms worldwide subsequently setting up specialist international units
- I am author of the leading textbook on international family law, now in 5th edition (2017)
- I was co-creator in 2017 of the world’s first arbitration scheme for family law disputes
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