Co-Parenting Solicitor

Whether you are separated from your partner or planning to raise a child with another parent, co-parenting can provide a secure and flexible way to share responsibilities and ensure your child’s best interests remain at the heart of every decision.

At JMW, our co-parenting solicitors provide clear, compassionate legal advice to help parents define their roles, responsibilities and arrangements. We advise individuals and families across England and Wales and internationally on all aspects of co-parenting, including parental responsibility, child arrangements, and co-parenting agreements that outline how decisions about a child’s upbringing will be made.

Our family law team has extensive experience advising clients in a wide range of family structures - including separated couples, LGBTQ+ families, and those growing their family through surrogacy or donation. We help you reach practical, fair and emotionally aware solutions that protect both your legal position and your child’s wellbeing.

To speak to a co-parenting lawyer, call our family law team on 0345 872 6666, or complete our online enquiry form to arrange a confidential discussion with one of our specialists.

How JMW Can Help

At JMW, our specialist family law team supports parents in creating and maintaining arrangements that are stable, fair, and focused on the child’s best interests. We understand that every family’s situation is unique, and we provide advice tailored to your circumstances - whether you are agreeing care responsibilities before conception, formalising arrangements after separation, or resolving disputes about child arrangements.

We can assist with:

• Drafting and reviewing co-parenting agreements: setting out practical arrangements for decision-making, living arrangements, and financial responsibilities.
• Advising on legal parenthood and parental responsibility: helping you understand your legal position under UK co-parenting law, including rights linked to conception, birth registration and care responsibilities.
• Resolving disputes between co-parents: offering negotiation and mediation support to help reach constructive, child-focused agreements.
• Advising on child arrangements and contact: defining where a child will live, how time will be shared, and how parents will make important decisions together.
• Assisting with family court applications: supporting clients in private law proceedings, such as child arrangements orders or parental responsibility applications.

Our family law team is recognised by the Legal 500, Chambers UK and Spears 500 for excellence in complex and sensitive family matters. Our co-parenting lawyers act with discretion, empathy, and a commitment to finding practical solutions that prioritise your child’s needs while maintaining positive, cooperative parenting relationships.

Meet Our Team

Our nationally recognised family law team provides sensitive, practical and expert advice to help parents create structured arrangements that support their children’s wellbeing and future stability.

What Is a Co-Parenting Agreement?

A co-parenting agreement is a carefully structured document that defines how parents will share the care, responsibilities, and decision-making for their child. It provides clarity and reassurance for parents who wish to establish stable, cooperative arrangements outside a traditional relationship structure.

Under UK co-parenting law, these agreements provide a practical framework for managing the day-to-day aspects of parenting, from living arrangements to financial support and communication. They can be especially valuable where conception takes place through donation or surrogacy, or following separation from the other parent.

A well-drafted co-parenting agreement sets out how practical and financial responsibilities will be managed, ensuring that decisions about a child’s upbringing are made collaboratively and with foresight. They can cover matters such as education, healthcare, living arrangements and financial contributions, all tailored to the unique dynamics of the family.

Our family lawyers advise parents across England and Wales on how to prepare and formalise these agreements. Speaking to specialist co-parenting solicitors will help to guide you through the legal considerations, anticipate potential areas of conflict, and create an agreement that reflects your family’s values and priorities.

What Should Be Covered in a Co-Parenting Agreement?

A well-drafted co-parenting agreement should anticipate both the practical and financial aspects of raising a child, providing structure and foresight for all parties involved. For parents with significant assets or professional commitments, clarity at this stage is essential to avoid ambiguity in the future.

Co-parenting agreements can be used to document not only day-to-day care arrangements, but also to reflect broader considerations such as financial security, succession planning and international mobility. The aim is to create a framework that protects the child’s welfare and preserves family harmony, while respecting each parent’s autonomy and commitments.

A comprehensive co-parenting agreement should cover:

• Living arrangements: where the child will reside, how time will be divided between homes, and arrangements for school holidays, travel and special occasions.
• Decision-making responsibilities: how parents will make important decisions about education, healthcare, religion and lifestyle choices.
• Financial arrangements: contributions to daily living costs, childcare, education, healthcare and extracurricular activities, including how these will adapt as circumstances evolve.
• Property and assets: how financial interests linked to the child, such as trust funds, school fees, or housing provision, will be managed.
• Dispute resolution: how parents will address disagreements - for example, through negotiation, mediation, or the involvement of legal representatives - without resorting immediately to court proceedings.
• Introduction of new partners: how changes in family circumstances will be approached to protect the child’s emotional stability.

For families with international connections, agreements can also include provisions for relocation, dual citizenship and education abroad, ensuring compliance with both UK co-parenting law and any relevant overseas jurisdictions.

Our family law team works closely with JMW’s wider network of family and private client solicitors to align childcare arrangements with estate planning, trust structures, and long-term financial strategies. Each agreement is tailored to meet the family’s individual needs.

What Are the Benefits of a Co-Parenting Agreement?

A co-parenting agreement provides certainty, structure, and reassurance for parents who wish to manage their shared responsibilities in a planned and transparent way. For families with complex financial or personal circumstances, it can serve as both a practical and strategic document - guiding day-to-day arrangements while helping to protect long-term interests.

The benefits of a carefully drafted co-parenting agreement include:

• Clarity and stability: by setting clear expectations, both parents understand their roles, responsibilities and commitments. This helps avoid misunderstandings and promotes a consistent environment for the child.
• Minimised conflict: having agreed terms in writing encourages open communication and cooperation, reducing the likelihood of disputes and the need for intervention by the family court.
• Financial foresight: for parents with substantial assets, the agreement provides a structured approach to funding education, property, healthcare and future financial support, ensuring these commitments are sustainable and fair.
• Continuity for the child: a predictable routine and consistent decision-making framework support a child’s emotional wellbeing, even where parents have separate households.
• Discretion and privacy: agreements provide an opportunity to resolve family matters privately, without recourse to public proceedings or disclosure of sensitive financial details.
• Evidential value: while not legally binding, a well-prepared agreement can assist the court in understanding the parties’ original intentions, should a dispute arise.

For parents with international ties or high-value assets, this kind of co-parenting arrangement can also provide stability across borders, helping to manage issues such as travel permissions, relocation and differing legal frameworks abroad.

Q

What is the difference between legal parenthood and parental responsibility?

A

Legal parenthood determines who is recognised as a child’s legal parent under UK law. This status affects matters such as inheritance, nationality and financial obligations. Legal parenthood is usually established at birth but can vary depending on how conception took place - for example, through assisted reproduction, donation or surrogacy.

Parental responsibility, on the other hand, relates to the right to make important decisions about a child’s life, including their education, healthcare and religion. It can be shared by more than one person and obtained through birth registration, agreement, or a court order.

Our family law team can explain how legal parenthood and parental responsibility apply in your situation and help you take the steps necessary to formalise your position.

Q

Are co-parenting agreements legally binding?

A

A co-parenting agreement is not legally binding in the same way as a formal court order. However, under UK co-parenting law, these agreements are recognised as persuasive evidence of the parents’ intentions and can carry considerable weight if a dispute later reaches the family court. The court will often consider a co-parenting plan as an indication of what the parents believed to be in the child’s best interests at the time it was made.

For this reason, co-parenting agreements should be prepared with independent legal advice and full transparency. This ensures that both parties understand their rights and responsibilities and that the document accurately reflects their shared intentions.

The co-parenting solicitors within JMW's family law team recommend that agreements are revisited periodically to reflect changes in the child’s needs or the parents’ circumstances - for example, relocation, new partners, or changing financial arrangements. We also assist clients who wish to formalise certain elements of their agreement through a child arrangements order, making aspects of the arrangement legally enforceable.