Child Care Solicitors

Leading Legal 500 national law firm Duncan Lewis is pleased to announce the recent appointment of solicitor Kathy Walker as a Director of Family & Childcare for the company’s Croydon office.

Kathy Walkerhas a significant practice in Croydon specialising in all aspects of childcare law and regularly represents victims of domestic violence in family matters. Kathy regularly represents children’s guardians, the child directly, parents, grandparents and family members in care proceedings, which have included non-accidental injury matters and issues of neglect, drug and alcohol misuse, emotional and physical harm. Kathy became a Member of the Law Society Children Panel in 2010 and is a member of Resolution, Nagalro and Baspcan (British Association for the Study and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect).

In addition to Kathy Walker, Children Panel Members Sarah Jopling, Frances Clare (Tooting office) , Michelle Bird (Harrow office) and Misbah Ali (Lewisham office) have all been appointed as Directors of Family & Childcare. They are joined by Kirsty Richards as a new Director of Family & Childcare in the company’s new Barnet office.


Duncan Lewis’ family and childcare team has been recognised as a leading practice by Legal 500 UK 2014. The department specialises in all aspects of family and private children law matters, with a particular family specialism in representing victims of domestic abuse and assisting in financial matrimonial matters relating to the breakdown of a marriage/relationship. The company holds a broad practice representing parents, family members and children through their children’s guardian in all children public law proceedings and are regularly appointed by Guardians to represent babies and young children in cases involving severe non-accidental injuries, fictitious illnesses and allegations of sexual abuse. The company’s childcare specialists have conduct in high profile international child abduction cases and regularly practice in inherent jurisdiction/forum disputes, international relocation cases, cross border care proceedings and wardship proceedings for the return of children taken out of the jurisdiction.

Duncan Lewis currently has 39 law society accredited children panel members that practice from offices across London and throughout the UK. The firm is one of only a small number of firms that are on the Lord Chancellor’s International Child Abduction & Contact Panel (ICACU). ICACU is responsible for administering Hague Convention (Child Abduction) proceedings work in England.