Emma Williams

Senior Associate

Emma is a senior associate who advises clients on all aspects of private family law including divorce and civil partnership dissolution, financial claims on relationship breakdown, nuptial agreements, jurisdiction disputes, financial claims in relation to children, as well as domestic and international private law children matters and surrogacy arrangements.

Emma is committed to exploring all options for her clients to ensure that they received a highly tailored approach that works for them and their family. This includes dealing with financial claims on divorce not only within court proceedings, but often outside of the court process entirely. This provides clients with greater privacy and control over the process, which is important to many, particularly individuals in the public eye. Where all other options have been explored/exhausted and court proceedings are the only route to a resolution, Emma has been described by counsel as having “magician hands” and is able to formulate exceptional case strategy, resulting in successful outcomes for her clients (for example, in AB v CD [2022] EWFC 116). 

Emma has a particular interest in and experience of complex high net worth financial claims, often with cross-border elements. This has involved cases with complex international and domestic trust and corporate structures in the context of divorce. Such cases regularly include issues relating to the value of a party’s interest in a trust and/or company, the liquidity of such assets and how these assets should be treated on divorce. Emma recently acted for the beneficiary of multiple offshore trusts and business owner in the reported cases of HO v TL [2023] EWFC 215 and HO v TL (Costs) [2023] EWFC 216.

Emma trained at Vardags before qualifying into their family team in April 2019. She joined Harbottle & Lewis in January 2022. Emma completed her law degree at Oriel College, University of Oxford. Emma has been described by counsel as wise beyond her years and a lawyer to watch. She is earning an admirable reputation, demonstrated by becoming a finalist for Family Law Associate of the Year at the LexisNexis Family Law Awards 2024 and Rising Star at the inaugural Women and Diversity in Law Awards 2023. Emma is a member of Resolution: Emma Williams | Resolution. Resolution’s members follow a Code of Practice that promotes a constructive approach to family issues and considers the needs of the whole family.

Published articles

Protecting business assets on divorce – Tatler Address Book

No-Fault Divorce: Where are we two years on? – EPrivateClient

Cohabitation: No further forward – Law Journals

Surrogacy in the United States and England and Wales in a global pandemic – ICFLPP