Independent Barrister Review
The Mediate UK barrister review is an independent written opinion from a practising family law barrister on what a court would be likely to order in your financial case. You instruct the barrister jointly, and you both receive the report at the same time. It helps when you are a long way apart or when mediation has stalled.
Who this is for. The barrister review is only available to couples who have completed full financial disclosure through Mediate UK. The barrister needs that disclosure to give a view worth having.
When is a barrister review useful?
A barrister review is most useful when a financial mediation is stuck on the numbers. Most deadlocks come down to two people holding different beliefs about what is fair, and an independent view of what a court would actually do tends to move both of them.
You are far apart
Two reasonable positions, a large gap, and no obvious way to close it.
Mediation has stalled
You have agreed most things, but one financial issue keeps stopping everything.
You want an expert, independent view
A neutral third party gives you both an expert, independent opinion on what a court would be likely to order.
Court is the alternative
Contested financial proceedings can cost £30,000 plus VAT or more each, according to MoneyHelper. The barrister review costs £649 plus VAT per person.
What the barrister review gives you
What the barrister review is not
How does a barrister review work?
A Mediate UK barrister review has four stages and takes around seven weeks. Nothing goes to the barrister until you have both read and agreed the report that goes with it, so you stay in control of what they see.
A joint meeting, and your report about 1 week
A Mediate UK mediator meets you both for one hour to go through your situation, the issues that need resolving and where each of you stands. Mediate UK then writes this up as a report, which usually takes about a week. You both agree the report before it goes anywhere. The initial meeting, including your report, costs £60 plus VAT per person.
The instruction goes out
Once you have both agreed the report, Mediate UK sends it to the barristers with your financial disclosure and anything else relevant to the questions being asked.
The barrister writes about 6 weeks
The barristers’ clerk allocates your case to the barrister with the best experience in that area. The barrister writes a report setting out what the law is, how it applies to your case, and what they think a court would order as a fair outcome. Timing is subject to availability.
You decide what to do with it
You can accept the barrister’s report outright, or use it as the basis to continue with family mediation. Family mediation with Mediate UK costs £120 plus VAT per person per hour.
Who writes the Mediate UK barrister review?
Mediate UK barrister reviews are written by practising family law barristers at St Ives Chambers in Birmingham, one of Mediate UK’s legal partners. The chambers’ clerks allocate each case to the barrister with the most relevant experience, and Charmian Jackson is one of the barristers who writes them.
Charmian Jackson
Charmian Jackson is a family law barrister at St Ives Chambers, specialising in financial remedy proceedings and private law children matters. Charmian also carries out early neutral evaluations and private financial dispute resolution hearings, which is the kind of independent assessment a barrister review provides.
Charmian’s profile at St Ives Chambers · Check any barrister on the Bar Standards Board register · Read a case study
What can you do after the barrister’s report?
The barrister’s report is information, not an instruction. What you do with it is still up to the two of you, and there are three options.
Agree it and move on
If the barrister’s view lands somewhere you can both live with, you settle on that basis and move straight to a consent order.
Use it to mediate the rest
Even where you do not adopt it wholesale, an expert view of the likely range usually narrows the argument, and you finish it in financial mediation.
Reject it
Neither of you is bound by the report. You can disregard it entirely and take whatever route you choose, including court.
How much does a barrister review cost?
The Mediate UK barrister review costs £649 plus VAT per person, or £1,298 plus VAT per couple. The initial one-hour meeting, including your report, costs £60 plus VAT per person on top, so the barrister review costs £709 plus VAT per person in total. If you continue with family mediation afterwards, it costs £120 plus VAT per person per hour.
Contested financial proceedings can cost £30,000 plus VAT or more each, according to MoneyHelper. A barrister review gives you an expert view of the likely outcome for a fraction of that, before either of you commits to fighting for it.
Mediate UK confirms the total with you before anything is instructed.
Barrister review: common questions
The things people ask most before instructing a barrister review. If yours is not here, the 15-minute call is free.
Ask us directlyIs the barrister’s report binding on us?
Is the barrister on my side?
Why do we need to have done financial disclosure first?
How long does a barrister review take?
How much does a barrister review cost?
Is the £60 meeting fee on top of the £649?
Do we both have to pay?
Do we get to see the report before it goes to the barrister?
Can we use a barrister review for child arrangements?
Can legal aid or the £500 voucher cover a barrister review?
Tell us what you are stuck on
Call Mediate UK and we will tell you whether a barrister review would help in your case, or whether another session of mediation would get you there for a great deal less.
The Mediate UK barrister review, in brief
The Mediate UK barrister review is an independent written opinion from a practising family law barrister on the likely court outcome of a financial case. The barrister is instructed jointly and neutrally, and does not act for either party. Mediate UK barrister reviews are written by family law barristers at St Ives Chambers, including Charmian Jackson. The barrister review costs £649 plus VAT per person and takes around seven weeks. The barrister review is only available to couples who have completed full financial disclosure through Mediate UK, and covers financial cases only.
Mediate UK is a family mediation service founded in 2011 and a trading name of Family Legal Ltd (company number 16431127). Mediate UK holds a Legal Aid Agency contract for family mediation, and its mediators are members of the Family Mediation Council. Mediate UK’s head office is in Bracknell, Berkshire, with 35+ locations and online mediation across England and Wales.
Content on this page is written by Jess Knauf, Director of Client Strategy, and reviewed by Belinda Atkins, Managing Director.
Prices last checked September 2026
All prices are quoted per person and exclude VAT unless stated otherwise. The initial one-hour meeting (£60 plus VAT per person) is charged in addition to the £649 plus VAT barrister review fee. Family mediation after the report, if you choose to continue, is charged at £120 plus VAT per person per hour. The barrister review is available only to parties who have completed full financial disclosure through Mediate UK, and covers financial cases only. The barrister is instructed jointly and neutrally and does not act for, advise or represent either party. The barrister’s report is an opinion on the likely outcome and is not binding on either party, nor on any court. Timescales are indicative and the six-week drafting period is subject to barrister availability. Court cost comparisons are drawn from MoneyHelper guidance on contested financial proceedings and vary considerably from case to case.