When your child's safety and wellbeing are at stake, legal costs should be the least of your worries. Yet for fathers facing child arrangement issues, uncertainty about legal costs often adds to an already stressful situation.
Higgs LLP has introduced a clear, fixed fee pathway which aims to give fathers clearer guidance, cost certainty and access to joined-up legal and mediation support at a critical time.
Increasing costs and growing delays mean many fathers still don’t know where they stand after separation. For many, this can also often mean uncertainty about their role in their child’s life as the partnership or marriage breaks down.
According to new data, that uncertainty is playing out in growing numbers through the courts and Higgs LLP is taking steps to bring clarity, and greater certainty for fathers earlier in the process to help avoid unnecessary distress and strain.
There are now an estimated 3.8 million children with separated or separating parents in the UK. At the same time, demand on the family courts is rising, with over 38,000 private law children’s cases already recorded between April 2025 and February this year. In just one quarter of 2025, 65,709 new cases were started in family courts, including child arrangement disputes.
Richard Westley is a children law specialist in the Family Law team at Higgs LLP, and is highlighting the struggle or uncertainty that many fathers have when it comes to child arrangements whilst also offering a supportive and clear pathway to resolution
As many as four in ten fathers lose regular contact altogether with their child(ren) on separation or divorce, and despite changing family dynamics, many fathers still feel they are starting from a position of disadvantage.
Many fathers are unaware of their rights, or that parental responsibility is not automatic in every cases. That’s a worrying statistic. The number of lone fathers is increasing (around 17% of single-parent families) while the majority of children still primarily live with their mother.
This lack of understanding of their options means that by the time they come to me for legal support, the situation has already escalated and there’s much uncertainty around outcomes, procedure and costs and, where to even start.
Traditionally, navigating separation involves multiple steps, often without cost visibility and realistic expectations on the possible outcomes. That’s precisely why we’re offering fathers the chance to get legal advice, or mediation at a fixed cost.
Richard Westley
Legal Director
Higgs LLP has introduced a fixed fee pathway for fathers navigating child arrangements on separation or divorce that brings together legal advice, mediation and, where needed, access to specialist representation in court, giving fathers a clearer understanding of both their options and likely costs from the outset. What remains at the centre of all decision making is the welfare and safety of the child.
The fixed-price packages give upfront pricing clarity and expert legal support from experienced solicitors and trusted barristers, so fathers can focus on what matters most.
Mediation starts from £840 and legal representation from £2,500 – more information and contact details can be found here.
