What Can a Family Law Paralegal Do? A Plain-English Guide

The Family Law Landscape After LASPO

The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2013 (LASPO) removed legal aid from the majority of private family law cases. The consequences have been profound: approximately 80% of private family law cases now involve at least one litigant in person, and the family courts are under sustained pressure from unrepresented parties who struggle to navigate complex proceedings without professional support.

Into this gap have stepped family law paralegals — experienced practitioners who can provide meaningful legal support at a fraction of solicitor rates. But the boundaries of what a paralegal can do are not always well understood, by clients or by paralegals themselves.

What a Family Law Paralegal Can Do

A qualified and experienced family law paralegal can lawfully provide the following services:

Document preparation and review

• Drafting position statements, witness statements, and skeleton arguments (for review and approval by the litigant)
• Reviewing financial disclosure documents (Forms E, bank statements, pension reports)
• Preparing chronologies and case summaries
• Reviewing and summarising court orders and directions

Legal research

• Researching case law relevant to the client's matter
• Summarising statutory provisions and procedural rules
• Identifying relevant precedents and explaining their significance

Correspondence

• Drafting letters to the other party or their solicitor
• Preparing responses to correspondence
• Drafting emails and communications with the court

Hearing support (as McKenzie Friend)

• Attending hearings with the litigant in a support capacity
• Taking notes during proceedings
• Quietly advising the litigant during breaks
• Helping the litigant to understand what is happening

Case management

• Organising and indexing the case file
• Tracking deadlines and directions
• Preparing bundles for court hearings

What Requires a Solicitor

The following activities are reserved legal activities under the Legal Services Act 2007 and can only be carried out by an authorised person (typically a solicitor):

• Conducting litigation: Issuing court proceedings, filing documents as the client's legal representative
• Exercising rights of audience: Appearing in court as an advocate on behalf of the client
• Providing regulated legal advice: Advice that constitutes the provision of legal services by an authorised person

In practice, this means a paralegal cannot issue a divorce petition on behalf of a client, cannot appear as their advocate in a contested hearing, and cannot sign documents as their legal representative. Everything else — the preparation, the research, the support — is within scope.

The McKenzie Friend Role

The McKenzie Friend role is particularly important in family law. A McKenzie Friend is a lay person who accompanies a litigant in person to a court hearing. They can:

• Take notes
• Quietly advise the litigant
• Help the litigant to organise their papers

They cannot speak in court on the litigant's behalf (unless the court grants them a right of audience, which is rare).

A family law paralegal acting as McKenzie Friend provides a powerful combination: the practical support of a McKenzie Friend combined with the legal knowledge and preparation skills of an experienced practitioner.

Finding the Right Paralegal

When engaging a family law paralegal, ask about:

• Their experience in family law specifically (not just general legal experience)
• Whether they hold professional indemnity insurance
• Whether they are a member of NALP or CILEx
• Their approach to the McKenzie Friend role

Our Freelance Paralegal Rate Calculator can help you understand what a fair rate looks like for family law paralegal support — so you can evaluate quotes with confidence.