Spear’s Review

1 Hare Court’s Richard Sear KC is a leading family law silk specialising in financial remedies following divorce, claims involving unmarried parents and cohabiting couples, and jurisdiction disputes.

Sear has appeared in several high-profile matters, including Standish v Standish, in which he acted for Anna Standish in the landmark Supreme Court case that examined the treatment of matrimonial and non-matrimonial property on divorce. He also acted in PN v SA [2025], a significant post-nuptial agreement case concerning allegations of undue influence.

His client base includes business owners, professionals and individuals with substantial family wealth. As he explains: ‘I represent all sorts of people from all sorts of walks of life from all over the world.’

A recognised expert in complex financial disputes, often involving novel points of law, Sear has observed the growing shift away from court-based resolution towards private dispute resolution mechanisms. He notes: ‘The private FDR has become a sort of juggernaut of how to resolve cases. I think it’s very effective, but it’s very expensive.’