EP109: Is there such a thing as an amicable divorce? With nurse turned family law expert Linda Lamb

“Marriage counselling isn’t a waste of time, it’s not always about getting back together, it’s about seeing if you should part and doing it in a sensible way.”

My guest today is family law expert Linda Lamb who has 25 years’ legal experience and is a resolution-trained collaborative lawyer and hybrid mediator. 

Linda is accredited by the Law Society and the Family Mediation Council to provide child inclusive mediation and has ‘Leading individual’ status with Chambers UK for expertise in family matters and mediation work with both adults and children.

In 2017 she founded LSL Family Law and last year was named as one of the #ialso100 f:Entrepreneurs.

Prior to entering law, Linda was a district nurse and community midwife – a role which has proved valuable to building her career in law.

“In nursing you have that caring aspect and actually family law is very similar," Linda says. "I just don’t need to touch people, although people do give me a hug from time to time.”   

We talk about the financial and emotional aspects of separation, finding solutions that make the divorce process, particularly when children are involved, less disjointed and painful and the benefits of a no-fault divorce. 

“The really important bits are sorting out what the arrangements of the children are going to be and how you’re going to split up the financial picture but that gets so overshadowed by the divorce petition saying: ‘you did this, this, this and this’.”

We also discuss: 

• How the pandemic has affected relationships and divorce rates

• Silver splitters and the concept of divorce nearing retirement

• The first steps to take when seeking a divorce 

• The Certainty Project and different ways to cope better with divorce  

• The pros and cons of prenuptial agreements 

For more information about Linda and LSL Family Law visit LSLfamilylaw.co.uk and follow @LSLfamilylaw on Facebook and Twitter.