Deborah Jeff

Spear’s Review

Simkins partner Deborah Jeff’s career has been characterised by major family law cases, including working ‘with two trust funds in the Isle of Man worth £13 million, and on a well-known singer/songwriter’s prenup’.

Noted for the law-changing case of SS v NS [2014], which shone a light on the needs-based assessment of maintenance payments to spouses, Jeff specialises in complex financial disputes between divorcing and cohabiting couples, often with offshore elements and intricate taxation issues. She has advised a wealthy Austrian property developer on a postnuptial agreement to protect £340 million in wealth, for example, as well as on a prenuptial agreement where there were inherited assets of approximately £1 billion.

She also has considerable experience with issues relating to children, and can offer support and insight around how divorce can affect the mental health of clients.

Adviser Profile

‘My work over recent years has increasingly been for public figures and those in the music and entertainment industry, particularly for clients fighting to protect their wealth at the outset of a relationship,’ says Deborah Jeff. 

Jeff’s high- and ultra-high-net-worth practice has grown exponentially, most recently with client interests between the UK, US, Switzerland, Germany and Luxembourg. That growth saw Jeff protecting a client’s assets of £340 million by way of a post-nuptial agreement. 

Respected by accountants and mental health professionals who entrust her with their most delicate and complex client needs, clients warm to her down-to-earth manner while respecting her attention to detail and ability to strategise a case from the outset.