Who pays the costs in child custody cases?

The general rule in court proceedings dealing with the arrangements for children is that each party will pay their own legal costs, this is regardless of the outcome of the case.

Generally speaking, the court do not consider it appropriate to penalise parties with costs orders. Costs orders are usually made within other areas of law against the losing party, and there are no ‘winners’ or ‘losers’ in proceedings concerning children.

A costs order is an order that requires one party to pay part or all of another party’s legal costs.

It is extremely rare for the court to order that one party pay costs as it will generally mean that there will be less money available to meet the families and children’s needs, it could lead to increased tension between parties that would not be in the best interests of the children and the threat of paying costs may deter parties from applying to the court.

With this being said, the court do have the discretion and ability to make a costs orders in certain exceptional circumstances.

When costs orders are made and why

The court has the power to order costs when they consider it fair and reasonable to do so. The court will have regard to the following factors when considering the issue of costs:-

· The conduct of the parties before, during and after the proceedings;

· Whether it was reasonable for a party to make or contest a particular allegation or issue;

· The way in which a party made or defended their case, or a particular allegation or issue;

· Whether the party succeed in making the application, in whole or in part.

When to pursue a costs order

Upon consideration of the above factors, our specialist team of family solicitors are able to advise and assist upon when it is appropriate to pursue an order for costs within proceedings that concern children.

If you would like an initial consultation with our Family Law on-boarding specialists to discuss your options, please call us for free on 0800 470 0331