Emotions can run high in any kind of legal dispute. Where children are involved the depth and range of feeling can be particularly intense. Our team of Child Law experts are considerate and sympathetic.

All our Partners and Senior Lawyers are respected members of the Association of Lawyers for Children (ALC) or Resolution and most are members of the Children Panel of the Law Society. Goodman Ray is affiliated to the British Agency for Adoption and Fostering (BAAF).

Peggy Ray

The Child Law Team is led by Peggy Ray, co-founder of the firm, who has been described by the Chambers Guide as "simply the best children's lawyer around" and "a pioneer in the field". Peggy acts for children, young people and parents involved in care proceedings, and in complex cases between parents. She also handles adoption and other child-related work.

Gwen Williams

is an experienced family lawyer whose specialty is representing children and parents in care proceedings and in difficult contact/residence disputes. Gwen is the Chair of the Board of Trustees of Solace Women’s Aid (an organisation covering several London boroughs which offers help to women and children fleeing domestic violence).

Joanna Bosanquet

Joanna specialises in cases concerning children, particularly public law and adoption.

Trudi Featherstone

advises on relationship breakdown (often with an international dimension) as it affects children cases. She is a Resolution-accredited specialist in advanced and complex financial disputes and private children law work. She is also trained in collaborative law, a discipline that seeks to avoid court proceedings where possible.

Victor Wasserberg

Victor undertakes all aspects of children work, including adoption.

Jemma Dally

advises in relation to all aspects of adoption law often with an international element. She also advises on all aspects of children law, including Special Guardianship, Friends and Family care, Residence and Parental Responsibility and legal rights of same sex couples. She is a member of BAAF and sits on their legal advisory committee.

Ann Thompson

acts for parents or children in care proceedings, often representing young mothers who are children themselves. She is accredited by Resolution as a family specialist and an international child abduction specialist, and is also trained as a Collaborative Lawyer.

Amanda Cattle

Amanda represents each of the parties in both Public and Private family proceedings

Natalie Friday

her areas of work include a broad range of ancillary relief cases and matters concerning financial provision for children and all aspects of financial provision arising out of the breakdown of marriage or of cohabitation.

Hilka Hollmann

specialises in private and public children law, with particular emphasis on international children matters. She also acts for parents in child abduction cases, care proceedings and private law proceedings.

Celia Thurman

Celia’s expertise includes disputes surrounding Residence, Contact and Parental Responsibility. She also acts for parents and grandparents in relation to Care Proceedings, Placement Proceedings and Adoption. Celia is a member of Young Legal Aid Lawyers and London Children Lawyers.

Kevin Skinner

Kevin’s primary areas of work are Public Children Law cases that have concurrent criminal proceedings, and Private Children Law cases where domestic violence is a concern.

Michael Bourdages