The Best Family
Lawyers In Queenstown

AWS LEGAL

Helping our people, clients and firm thrive

We know legal advice is only as good as the relationships we build and services that underpin it. We aim to keep you informed every step of the way and deliver on our undertakings.

A lead partner is assigned to each client to keep an eye on “the big picture”. This ensures all work is completed efficiently and practical advice is given in your best interests.

Our partners and solicitors all work within their specialty area, with an ongoing commitment to professional development. With offices throughout Southland and Central Otago you benefit from the expertise and skills a big firm has to offer, alongside the unique local knowledge and passion our people bring.

TODD & WALKER LAW

EXPERIENCED VALUED PRAGMATIC ADVICE

TODD & WALKER Law is one of Central Otago’s leading all service law firms headed by Principals Graeme Todd, Michael Walker, Peter Sygrove, Louise Denton and Ben King. Graeme, Michael, Peter, Louise and Ben and the firm’s experienced legal team of Lawyers and Legal Executives have many close connections to Southland and Otago and the firm’s reputation extends throughout New Zealand. According to a recent article in the Australasian legal sector publication LawFuel, we were touted as being one of New Zealand’s six emerging legal firms and are… “a boutique law firm with a small firm culture capable of tackling big law jobs”.

Known for providing independent, valued, cost effective and pragmatic legal advice to its local, national and international clientele TODD & WALKER Law constantly strives to provide high levels of service and prompt communication with clients. We comprise a highly-experienced team of legal staff and a reputable network of specialists and experts we can refer matters requiring particular expertise.

MACTODD LAWYERS

WE UNDERSTAND RELATIONSHIPS ARE FRAGILE.

Navigating the law is even more challenging when emotions and loved ones are involved.

We will guide you through all relationship property and family relationship matters.

If things go wrong with your relationship.

Arrangements needs to be made to divide the property and look after the children.

We provide clear and pragmatic advice on your legal rights and entitlements after you have separated. We specialise in a broad spectrum of cases, and act for couples who own significant assets, have interests in complex trust and business structures as well as couples whose only significant asset is the family home.

At the start of a relationship, our family law team also provide advice on how to protect your assets and help you to be clear about what you will receive upon separation and will ensure that your new partner will not have a claim to your separate property.

The wellbeing of children is also a key focus on separation.

We can assist in drafting and finalising an arrangement that is in the children’s best interests and have a specialist Lawyer for Child who can be appointed to represent your children’s interests should you and your partner not agree on the care arrangements.

And if you need Legal Aid, we can provide that too.

LLOYD TROON LAW

Our family shapes our future

While often it is when a relationship ends that people consult a lawyer, it is not just when things go wrong that we can help you. We can help you structure your affairs to manage and minimise the impacts at separation, death and succession – the most stressful times in our lives. With more years of experience than at least two of us wish to acknowledge, our goal is to realise the best and most cost-effective outcome for you and your family whether that is through negotiation and agreement, or requires more formal processes, including application to Court. We have expertise and can assist you with:

Separation advice

• Care of children (parenting orders, guardianship disputes)
• Dividing property
• Domestic violence
• Maintenance and child support
• Relocation
• Hague Convention
• Making and defending applications in the Family and High Court
• Mediation

Family and Relationship Property

• Contracting out agreements
• Disputes about Wills (family protection, testamentary promises)
• Estate Planning
• Litigation (Family Court and High Court)
• Wills

Child Law

• Care arrangements for children on separation
• Care and protection of children and young people
• Adoption (local and international)
• Surrogacy
• Status of Children
• Paternity
• Human Assisted Reproduction Technology (IVF, donor)
• Court appointments including Counsel for Child, Lawyer for Child, Youth Advocate, Counsel to Assist the Court, Counsel for Subject Person
• Hague Convention (international child abduction)
• Mediation
• Litigation
• Personal Protection
• Protection orders
• Occupation orders
• Welfare guardianship
• Property manager orders
• Personal orders
• Care and protection of children and young persons
• Youth court
• Elder law

LANE NEAVE

Lane Neave is committed to solving problems and realising opportunities for our clients.

We tap into more than 150 years of experience and provide our hugely talented pool of emerging and current legal experts with the opportunity to make the complex simple.

We provide clear, decisive legal advice that gives real value and advantage to our clients, who range from multi-national corporates to small business owners and individuals.

Most of our lawyers specialise in specific areas of the law and many have become recognised experts in their chosen fields. However, everyone embraces a ‘team’ approach, which gives us a strength and depth across the whole spectrum of the law.

Our Partners work directly with our clients on a day-to-day basis. The insight we get from getting to know you and your business means that we’re better able to help you when it counts, and that we will be there for you through thick and thin.

BERRY & CO BARRISTERS & SOLICITORS

Our team has a wealth of experience and expertise in family law matters. Our family law specialists are well known for providing practical and sensitive advice and solutions on all aspects of family law.

We can help you with:

• Legal advice for partners when entering into a relationship, particularly in relation to property sharing, and second and subsequent relationships.
• Advice on separation and dissolution of marriage, de facto relationship or civil union, including the division of relationship property.
• Relationship property negotiation and settlement.
• Care of children issues, including parenting agreements and parenting orders.
• Working with Child Youth and Family Service.
• Property management under the Protection of Property and Personal Rights Act (PPPR).
• Domestic protection, and
• Appearances in the Family Court, including defended hearings.

David Salter and Merrin Gill are both court-appointed Lawyers for Child.

JUDITH FLETT FAMILY LAWYER

As a specialist family lawyer with over 40 years experience Judith is able to assist you with the care, contact and guardianship arrangements for your children providing sound and practical advice which is solution based and reflects the various stages of your children’s lives.

Judith is also an experienced Lawyer for Child, Lawyer to Assist and Counsel for Subject Person who has received many appointments from the Family Court over the years and is well respected for her knowledge and understanding of family situations.

Judith is available Mon-Thus during office hours and is not a legal aid provider.

CRUICKSHANK PRYDE LAWYERS

At Cruickshank Pryde, we have experts well-versed in many areas of the law. Our team delivers top-quality legal advice across several specialities. Our areas of expertise include Property Law, Estate Planning, Rural/Agribusiness, Family Law, Commercial Law, Resource Management, and Employment Law.

Our combination of lawyers with decades of experience combined with younger solicitors, means that you will be getting the winning combination of wisdom and enthusiasm. They are well supported by experienced legal executives and administrators to make a proficient team that puts your needs first. Get in touch with our experts directly or give us a call or stop by our branches in Invercargill, Gore, or Queenstown and we’ll direct you to the person who can best help you.

At Cruickshank Pryde, we have lawyers well-versed in many areas of law. See our terms of engagement for details about working with us.

WYNN WILLIAMS

Wynn Williams has been advising clients in legal aspects of their personal lives since day one. We are known for our strategic and prudent advice in helping clients future proof the things that are important to them. Our team is highly experienced in advising clients who are going through challenging situations in their relationships and assisting them to achieve their objectives through negotiation, mediation and, if necessary, litigation. We can also provide expert advice and assistance on a broad range of family law matters, including the care of children and family violence. Whether you are entering into a new relationship or your relationship has broken down, we always work towards a successful outcome for our clients – discretely and sensitively wherever possible.

How we can help

Wynn Williams advises our clients in many aspects of their personal lives. Our team are highly experienced in a number of related fields including:

• Contracting out agreements (colloquially known as “pre-nups”)
• Separations and the division of relationship property, often involving complex asset pools
• Spousal maintenance
• Claims against trusts
• Claims against estates
• Care of children
• Child support
• Guardianship issues
• Adoption
• Family violence and protection orders