Forster Dean Solicitors in Liverpool

We act for clients right across Liverpool — Allerton, Aigburth, Woolton, Childwall, Wavertree, Old Swan, West Derby, Anfield, Walton, Norris Green, Speke, Garston and the city centre.

Our nearest office is at 32–34 Widnes Road, Widnes, around twenty minutes from south Liverpool and directly connected by train from Liverpool Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway. For most clients that is closer and easier to park at than a city centre firm — and a good deal easier than trying to get a person on the phone at one.

We advise on divorce and family law, employment law, conveyancing, wills, LPAs and probate, and personal injury.

Call 0151 422 0982.

Conveyancing for Liverpool property

Liverpool’s housing stock creates conveyancing questions that a firm handling a national caseload will often skate over.

Leasehold is the big one.A large proportion of Liverpool’s Victorian and Edwardian terraces are leasehold, alongside the flats and apartments across the city centre, the Baltic Triangle and the waterfront. That means checking the unexpired lease term, ground rent and any escalation, service charges and their history, the reserve fund, the freeholder’s and managing agent’s record, and whether a lender will lend at all on the term remaining. Getting the management pack out of a slow managing agent is frequently the single longest delay in a Liverpool sale, which is why we chase it from day one rather than week six.

Apartments bring their own set: cladding and building safety information, EWS1 requirements where they apply, and whether the block’s remediation position affects a lender’s decision.

Older terraces bring unregistered or partly registered titles, historic conversions done without consent, missing FENSA and Gas Safe certificates, and boundaries that do not match the plan.

We also handle new build purchases with fixed exchange deadlines, shared ownership, Right to Buy, buy-to-let (with the 5% additional property surcharge), remortgages and transfers of equity. Searches for Liverpool properties go through Liverpool City Council, and we will tell you the current turnaround rather than a stock answer.

Stamp Duty Land Tax in England: nothing up to £125,000; first-time buyer relief to £300,000 with partial relief to £500,000.

You get a named conveyancer with a direct line, and a written quote separating our fee from disbursements.

Divorce and family law

Family proceedings for Liverpool clients are dealt with locally, and we are in those courts regularly.

Divorce is no-fault: no allegations, no defence, a minimum 20 weeks to the conditional order and six weeks more to the final order. The divorce does not resolve the money. The financial settlementdoes, and until a consent order is approved by the court, financial claims stay open — for years, and after remarriage in some circumstances. We advise on the home, pensions, savings, businesses, debts and maintenance, and draft the order that closes it down.

Children. Where they live, how time is shared, changes of school, and relocation. Most arrangements are agreed; we go to court when they cannot be.

Protection.Non-molestation and occupation orders where there has been abuse or harassment, including urgent applications.

Unmarried couples. Liverpool has a high proportion of cohabiting households, and the law treats them very differently from married couples. There is no common law marriage. If you separate, your rights in a shared home depend on property and trust law, and on what was recorded when you bought. Advice early is worth considerably more than advice later.

Employment law

Liverpool’s employers span the NHS trusts, the universities, the port and logistics, the public sector, hospitality and a large professional services base. We advise employees on:

• unfair and constructive dismissal
• redundancy — process, consultation, selection, and what you are owed
• discrimination on any protected characteristic
• disciplinary and grievance procedures
• whistleblowing
• settlement agreements, where your employer will normally pay your legal costs, because without independent advice the agreement is not binding

Employment tribunal claims for Liverpool clients are heard at the Liverpool Employment Tribunal. Note two changes: from 1 October 2026 the limit for bringing most claims extends from three months to six, and for dismissals from 1 January 2027 the unfair dismissal qualifying period falls from two years to six months, with the compensation cap removed.

We also act for employers on contracts, policies, fair process, redundancy and tribunal defence.

Wills, LPAs and probate

Wills.Without one, the intestacy rules apply: a spouse takes personal possessions, the first £322,000 and half of the remainder; children take the rest; an unmarried partner takes nothing, however long you were together; stepchildren take nothing unless adopted. Liverpool property values mean the £322,000 threshold is reached more often than people expect, which can force a sale of the home a surviving spouse lives in.

Lasting Powers of Attorney.Two types — property and financial affairs, and health and welfare — doing different jobs, and most people need both. £92 each to register, around 8 to 10 weeks. They cannot be made after capacity is lost; at that point it is a Court of Protection deputyship at £432 plus a £100 assessment fee, annual supervision of £35 to £320, and months of waiting.

Probate and estate administration, whether you want us to handle everything or just the difficult parts.

Why instruct a firm just outside the city

City centre firms are not short of clients, and it shows in how they allocate their time. The complaint we hear most from people who have come to us from one is not about the quality of the law — it is about never speaking to the same person twice, and about work that sits because a partner is busy on something larger.

A firm of our size works differently. You get a named solicitor with a direct line, and a caseload that leaves room to answer the phone. There is no city centre overhead built into the fee, and no parking charge for coming to see us.

Practically, distance rarely matters. Documents are exchanged electronically, identity verification is done remotely, appointments happen by video where you prefer, and completion monies move by bank transfer regardless of where the solicitor sits. The one place proximity does count is when you want to sit down with someone — over a will, a divorce, or a set of papers that need going through page by page — and for most of Liverpool, Widnes Road is a shorter journey than the city centre in traffic.

Areas we act for in Liverpool

Allerton, Mossley Hill, Aigburth, Grassendale, Garston, Speke, Woolton, Gateacre, Childwall, Wavertree, Old Swan, Broadgreen, Kensington, Toxteth, Dingle, Everton, Anfield, Walton, Norris Green, Croxteth, West Derby, Fazakerley, Clubmoor and the city centre — plus Knowsley, Prescot, Whiston, Huyton and Halewood on the way to our Widnes office.

Nearest office: Forster Dean Solicitors, 32–34 Widnes Road, Widnes, WA8 6ASAlso at Devonshire House, Devonshire Square, Runcorn WA7 1AW and 9 Hardshaw Street, St Helens WA10 1QX. Phone: 0151 422 0982 Email: enquiries@forsterdean.co.uk

Do you have an office in Liverpool?

Our nearest office is in Widnes, about twenty minutes from south Liverpool and on the direct train line from Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway. We act for clients across the city, and most matters can be handled by phone, email and post if you would rather not travel at all.

Can you deal with a leasehold flat in the city centre?

Yes. Leasehold work — lease terms, ground rent, service charges, management packs and building safety information — is a routine part of what our conveyancing team does.

Will my case be heard in Liverpool?

Family and employment matters for Liverpool clients are dealt with in the Liverpool courts and tribunal, and we appear there regularly.

Do I have to come to Widnes to instruct you?

No. Call 0151 422 0982and we will arrange whatever works — office appointment, telephone or video.