Mckenzie Friends (updated Sept 2025)

Quite a long time ago now I wrote a blog post which talked about what Mckenzie Friends are, what we do, and how we might assist in your case. It was quite a well-read article with almost 3000 views. However, 3 ½ years later it’s time to revisit the post to update.

What are Mckenzie friends

Mckenzie Friends are those who assist people going through Court proceedings but who are representing themselves. My specialism, along with that of my team at First Family Law is Family Law proceedings. This means we typically help with:-

Child Law proceedings*

Divorce & Financial proceedings

Domestic Abuse injunction proceedings

Mckenzie Friends are NOT one big organisation. A common misconception is that we are all colleagues (indeed, a less than honest individual has claimed to be a colleague of mine in the past!) We are not. Each Mckenzie Friend is an individual, with some as First Family Law do, deciding to work together collaboratively. Please therefore be extremely careful when looking for a Mckenzie Friend and ensure that you are approaching a reputable individual or firm such as First Family Law. Our email address, in case anyone contacts you claiming to be us, is info@firstfamilylaw.co.uk

Who are First Family Law?

First Family Law are a law firm of four of the most experienced and highly respected Mckenzie Friends in the jurisdiction of England and Wales. I (Neil Andrews) am the Director of First Family Law, and I am a qualified Paralegal, regulated by the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEX).

My team, incredible colleagues and other three members of First Family Law are Jay, Helen and Carly. More information including testimonials on each of us can be found here.

What type of help can they offer?

Mckenzie Friends offer you advice throughout your proceedings. This can include (but is not limited to):-

• General advice regarding whether you’re ‘being reasonable’ at all stages of the case

• Advice regarding mediation & MIAMs

• Advice as to how best to deal with CAFCASS and Children’s Services

• Advice on how the court process works

• Advice on how to present yourself at court

• Advice on what to expect at each hearing

• Advice as to what legal options might be available to you at each stage.

Mckenzie Friends also offer advice and support with all aspects of case paperwork. This can include (but is not limited to):-

• Drafting application forms

• Drafting statements

• Drafting responses to the other party or their representation

• Drafting cross examination questions

• Drafting consent orders

Mckenzie Friends don’t represent you. That’s the most important distinction from Solicitors. This means we can’t write to the other side in your case on your behalf. We can however draft your responses, whether that is to the other side directly, or to their solicitor.

We can’t speak for you in your hearings because Mckenzie Friends don’t (usually) have ‘rights of audience’. Often, we will attend hearings with you and sit beside you. We are allowed to take notes, assist with organising paperwork and offer you ‘quiet advice’ throughout the hearings.

Who can be a Mckenzie Friend?

Anybody! There are no specific qualifications required for someone to call themselves a Mckenzie Friend. If you are looking for a Mckenzie Friend and you stumble upon one claiming to be ‘qualified as a Mckenzie Friend’ then run a mile!

Unlike solicitors and barristers ‘Mckenzie Friend’ is not a protected term meaning that anyone can claim to be one. Whilst this comes with a high degree of flexibility it does mean that, perhaps inevitably, there are a lot of people out there claiming to be Mckenzie Friends. It is therefore vital that if you’re thinking about using a Mckenzie Friend you will absolutely need to do your due diligence. We have heard many accounts in our Facebook group where people have used one and either been ripped off or received a very poor service. As Mckenzie Friends are not regulated (for example as solicitors are by the Solicitors Regulation Authority) then if things go wrong you have no recourse to make a complaint.

Why should I use First Family Law?

Unlike most Mckenzie Friends and Mckenzie Friend companies First Family Law is run by a regulated and qualified legal professional, has its own formal complaints policy, has been up and running since 2019, and has countless positive reviews. This means that if you choose First Family Law you can be sure that you will receive a professional service that you can rely on.

We are among the most experienced family law Mckenzie Friends in England and Wales having dealt with well over a thousand cases collectively. This means that when we advise our clients we are drawing on that experience, giving you the most accurate advice possible.

How does using a Mckenzie Friend compare to using a Solicitor or a Barrister?

Firstly it is important to note that all three provide different services:-

A Mckenzie Friend – assists, supports, advises, assists with paperwork and sometimes attends court.

A Solicitor – represents, writes letters and paperwork, advises, sometimes represents at court.

A Barrister –  sometimes writes paperwork, represents at court.

It is a matter for the hirer to decide which type of legal professional to use. Some decide to use more than one. If you choose to use a Solicitor you may find they instruct a Barrister for the hearings rather than attend themselves. This is common. Some people decide to completely self-represent, and / or self-represent but receive advice from a Solicitor or Mckenzie Friend.

What are the costs?

During the last version of this blog post I included costs for each option over an entire case, but due to inflation these have gone up quite a lot.

OPTION1: Mckenzie Friend only

At First Family Law our Mckenzie Friend services cost £72-90per hour, inclusive of VAT. Our costs for court attendance tend to vary depending upon location but it’s quite possible to use a Mckenzie Friend throughout your case and spend as little as £500. This can increase with the more assistance you need, as everyone’s needs vary. In extremely lengthy and / or complex cases our time can stetch to many tens of hours and therefore could result in a total spend of around £3,000 when including hearing attendances.

Some people simply choose not to use any courtroom representation (such as a Solicitor or Barrister) as they feel they themselves are the best advocate for their children. You remain a Litigant-in-person (self-representing).

BEST FOR: This option is best for someone who feels they can speak for themself in court, but needs some guidance of what to do, when and how. This is also the cheapest form of legal assistance available.

OPTON 2: Solicitor (optionally with Barrister)

Using a solicitor solely for advice will likely cost more than £300 per hour, inclusive of VAT. An average, moderately contentious case, needs 20-40 hours of solicitors time outside of hearings. This means that even before considering any disbursements (court fees, etc – which you will pay for) you would be looking more than £6,000 to £12,000 including writing letters to the other party. For a senior solicitor, or inside London you can be looking at much higher than that. This fee does not include any fees for attending hearings though and would just be for advice.

BEST FOR: This option is best for someone that wants to represent themself but still takes some legal advice outside of the courtroom.

OPTION 3: Solicitor and Barrister

Using a solicitor is the most expensive option, and whether they instruct a barrister or not this option could set you back up to a whopping £30,000 - £50,000+ depending on how the case goes due to court hearing fees. It’s rare to end up spending less than £10,000 using both a Solicitor and Barrister(s). Aside from cross examination (where you are questioned by the representation for the other side) you will not have to say much at all in the courtroom, but that can mean you feel somewhat silenced when you want to speak up.

BEST FOR: This option is best for someone where money is not a limiting factor. If you want everything doing for you, and do not have a clue what you’re doing then this is the best choice.

OPTION 4: Direct Access Barrister only.

Another option is to use only Barristers. A litigant in person (someone who is self-representing) can instruct a barrister directly using the Direct Access scheme. Barristers charge fixed fees of around £2000-£5000 for a short hearing, and can charge over £10,000 for a whole day or multiple day hearing. Sometimes less experienced Barristers can be found who charge a little less than this.

Whilst this is appreciatively still very expensive it can still save a lot of money when compared to using both a Solicitor and Barrister. Hiring a Barrister in this way requires finding one who will accept instruction on a ‘direct access’ basis. It is important to note though that Barristers don’t represent you outside of court hearings. They may offer a position statement writing service but generally this can be prohibitively expensive and less efficient even than using a solicitor due to their high costs.

BEST FOR: This option is best for someone where they know how court works, understands the process and requirements, but doesn’t feel they can articulate themself well enough under pressure and prefers someone to speak in court on their behalf.

OPTION 5: Mckenzie Friend and Barrister

The final option is to use a Mckenzie Friend and a Barrister. This can arguably be seen as the best of both worlds. You receive advice about how to manage your case, help with statements and other paperwork as mentioned above, but you have the benefit of an ‘expert in the courtroom’ Barrister who can do all the talking for you. You remain self-representing but with the ‘hired gun’ in the courtroom.  

This is my option of choice for clients, as it is the most cost effective whilst still meaning the client is represented at hearings.

BEST FOR: This option is best for someone who wants a value-for-money approach, and who may not feel confident enough to speak in court.

 Legal Aid

Legal aid for your case may be possible, but the criteria upon receiving it is very strict. There are three tests – all of which must be met for legal aid to be awarded. Even then it is rare that such an award includes the final hearing (most expensive one).

1)        There must be ‘some’ evidence of domestic abuse that you are trying to protect the child from. The evidence for this is wide ranging and can include things like criminal convictions or letters from domestic abuse support workers.

2)        You must pass the means test. This means that you are otherwise unable to afford legal representation.

a.        Your (and where relevant your partner’s) gross income must be £2,657 per month or less.

b.        After allowed deductions (tax, NI, housing / mortgage etc) your disposable income must be £733 per month or less.

c.        You (and any relevant partner’s) savings must be under £8,000.

d.        ALL THREE of these tests must be met.

e.        Certain benefits can mean you automatically qualify without needing the full income test.

f.           These figures accurate as of Sept 2025

3)        You must pass the merits test – this means that the case must have a reasonable chance of success, and the costs must be proportionate regarding what you’re asking the court to do.

*Child law proceedings can be public or private. Public law means that the Local Authority is taking you to court to decide the future of your children. Legal aid is ALWAYS available for this. Mckenzie Friends and First Family Law are therefore not trained in Public Law. As parents will always have solicitors available to them there is no role for us. Private law is where there is a dispute between parents / guardians. This is the work we perform and are trained for and represents the vast majority of cases.

If you wish to enquire about using the Mckenzie Friend team at First Family Law then please contact info@firstfamilylaw.co.uk today.

To book a consultation with me directly then please to do so at calendly.com/firstfamilylaw