Partner & Childcare and Family Law Teams
Francesca Greenfield is a Partner, Children Law Accreditation Scheme member and Solicitor-Advocate at King Street Solicitors LLP and is Head of its Childcare Law Team. Francesca has focused throughout her career on developing her expertise in children law.
“Can I just say how much I have enjoyed working with you on several cases over the last few years, your commitment to the children you represent is exceptional.” – Children’s Guardian.
Francesca represents children, parents, and family members in applications made by local authorities including applications for emergency protection orders, care orders, supervision orders, placement orders and adoption applications.
She is an empathetic and effective advocate whose clients benefit from her proactive and hard-working approach, commitment, and extensive children law experience.
As a well-respected Children Panel solicitor with over a decade of experience representing children, Francesca is often instructed to represent children in legally and factually complex cases, including representation of the subject children in one of three linked FII cases in 2023 (reported in Re BR & others (Transparency Order: Finding of Fact Hearing) [2023] EWFC 9; Re BR & others (Three Families: Fabricated or Induced Illness: Findings of Fact( [2023] EWFC 2023 and Re BR & others (Three Families: Fabricated or Induced Illness: Anonymisation, Disclosure of Judgment and Permission to Appeal by Witness) [2023] EWFC 329.
Other recent examples of Francesca’s work have included cases arising from serious inflicted or non-accidental injuries, representation of children and parents with complex physical and mental health needs, assessments of overseas carers (in Hague and non-Hague Convention countries), cases involving intractable parental disputes and cases involving relinquished babies. Francesca has experience of Forced Marriage Protection Order, Female Genital Mutilation Protection Order and Deprivation of Liberty cases. She has dealt with a number of cases in recent years involving the legally complex area of recognition of overseas adoptions.
“I’d just like to say thank you very much for all your hard work … I have been very impressed by your efficiency and commitment to obtaining the best outcome for the children.” – Children’s Guardian.
“Thanks for all the support and advice Fran as always” – Children’s Guardian
Francesca has a particular interest and expertise in the representation of children in complex private law disputes.
She has successfully represented family members and other potential kinship carers in challenging negative local authority assessment and in challenging local authority financial and other support offers.
Background
Francesca graduated from Oxford University in 2003. She was called to the Bar in 2005 and qualified as a Solicitor in 2007.
She has been a member of the Law Society’s Children Law Accreditation Scheme since 2012. Her scheme membership means that she has shown, to the satisfaction of the Law Society, that she has and will maintain a high level of knowledge, skills, experience and practice in children law.
Francesca has held Higher Rights of Audience in civil proceedings since 2014, meaning that she can provide continuity of representation to clients at every stage of Court proceedings, including in the Appeal Courts.
Francesca was appointed as a Deputy District Judge on the North Eastern Circuit in 2021.
Further Client Feedback
“I haven’t thanked you enough for all your support from the very beginning you have been by my side … you are amazing, you don’t get enough credit for what you do. You have cut all the bulls**t out and told me how it is. What I’m trying to say is thank you for being here for me.” – Parent in care proceedings
“Thank you for all your hard work, you saved my life and gave me hope and for that you’ll always be part of our lives I’ll tell [my daughter] all about you and how amazing you did your job you’ve been a role model to me and gave me strength to fight you got me my baby back I will never forget that!!” – Parent in care proceedings
“I knew what to do this time I knew the right things to do before they even had to tell me and that was down to you … thank you I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for you I am so grateful” – Parent in care proceedings
“I would like to say a big thank you from the bottom of my heart me and my girls appreciate all the hard work you have done. We will never forget what you did.” – Parent in Family Law Act injunction and Child Arrangements Order proceedings
Thank you so much for all your support with this case, your knowledge shines through and it really has been a pleasure to work with you, I also hope to do so again in the future” – Children’s Guardian
“I cannot thank you enough for your service as without your input we wouldn’t have got this far” – Extended family member seeking kinship assessment
“Thank you for all your help. We really appreciate everything you have done for us” – Special Guardian
Notable Cases
Re BR & others (Three Families: Fabricated or Induced Illness: Findings of Fact) [2023] EWFC 2023
Re BR & others (Three Families: Fabricated or Induced Illness: Anonymisation, Disclosure of Judgment and Permission to Appeal by Witness) [2023] EWFC 329.
Re BR and others (Transparency Order: Finding of Fact Hearing) [2023] EWFC 9 (transparency order arising from finding of fact hearing).
Re PP (A Child: Anonymisation) [2023] EWHC 330 (Fam) (reporting restriction arising from deprivation of liberty application).
Re Y [2019] EWCA Civ 2209 (solicitor for the child in care proceedings on an appeal against designation of Local Authority in circumstances where a parent had no ordinary residence).
Re J [2016] EWHC 2430 Fam (acted for Father in this widely reported case in which the Court transferred residence to the father as he offered the best opportunity for the child to develop his own identity).
Re J (Reporting Restrictions) [2016] EWHC 2595 (The Mail on Sunday’s application to report details of the above case, comprehensive reporting restriction order made).
Re GB (Children) [2013] EWCA Civ 164 (acted for Mother in application for permission to appeal a refusal by the Judge in care proceedings to adjourn a final hearing in order that she might seek alternative legal representation. Application granted but appeal dismissed).
Contact
Contact Francesca on 01924 332395 or by email fg@kingstreetsolicitors.co.uk