Spear’s Review

Stewarts’ Emma Hatley, a veteran in our rankings and a past winner of the Spear’s Family Lawyer of the Year Award, has acted in several of the most complex family law cases to appear in the High Court.

Her practice covers the full suite of family law matters, from high-value divorce settlements and nuptial agreements to jurisdiction disputes and international child relocation. Clients include professionals, entrepreneurs, members of the aristocracy and celebrities. 

Cases often involve assets well in excess of £30 million, and frequently cross jurisdictions. Fitting, then, that Hatley is president of the European chapter of the International Academy of Family lawyers.

She tells Spear’s that she continues to pride herself on staying ‘up-to-date with the law,’ providing robust advice and maintaining discretion. 

She has been described by one peer as ‘the essence of what HNW clients want and need’ in a family lawyer: ‘highly intelligent, industrious, fast, constructive … [with] no sitting on the fence or waffle’.

Notable cases

• Re C (Older Children – Relocation) [2015] EWCA Civ 1298

Adviser Profile

Emma Hatley is widely regarded as a leading family lawyer of her generation, consistently ranked as a Star Individual and praised for her technical excellence, strategic judgment and measured, engaging style. Emma advises high- and ultra-high-net-worth individuals on complex, often international matters, working closely with advisers across offshore jurisdictions and the US.

Emma specialises in high-value financial disputes involving global assets, trusts and businesses, as well as jurisdictional issues and urgent relief. A trained mediator and collaborative lawyer, she is a skilled negotiator who earns clients’ trust, but remains a tenacious and effective litigator when required.