Resolving Disputes with Friends or Family

Any breakdown between friends and family is stressful. Birkett Long’s specialist dispute resolution team will help you find agreement and resolve your disagreement in the best possible way.

We will ensure you understand the processes and will help you make important and difficult decisions regarding your loved one, your will or your money, when you may feel least equipped to make them. Wherever possible, we always seek to settle disputes by negotiation.

There are lots of different disputes that friends and families can face, for example:

• Are you worried about the care or financial mismanagement of an elderly loved one?
• Has a loved one lost mental capacity, and you want to be appointed to deal with their affairs (Court of Protection deputyship application)?
• Are there arguments about what’s been left to you in someone’s will, a trust or inheritance?

Funding your dispute
From the start, we keep you informed of costs and procedures, and can usually offer flexibility in payment terms. To take a look at the different options we have available, take a look at our 'payment options for your dispute' page.

Birkett Long has one of the largest dispute resolution teams in Essex, with qualified specialists who are experts in their fields.

Two of our lawyers are members, and one a studying member, of the respected Association of Contentious Trust and Probate Specialists (ACTAPS). Only a few members of this association operate outside of London. Our team also includes an accredited mediator with ADR Net, a technician member of Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and a Deputy District Judge. Our will disputes team members are all Dementia Friends. We also have several members of Solicitors for the Elderly.