Louisa Ghevaert was delighted to attend Resolution’s Modern Families Forum 2026 in central London on 18 June 2026. There was a fantastic line up of speakers covering single parenthood and co-parenting, modern family case law update and legal aspects of trans parenting and representation of young people. Journalist Nicola Slawson gave an insightful keynote speech about her journey to parenthood as a single woman through platonic co-parenting with her gay best friend Tom. She provided personal insight into how platonic co-parenting provides a father for her daughter and helps her share the responsibilities, mental load and logistics associated with parenting, whilst acknowledging that family life evolves, has to be cultivated and takes work.
Images: Nicola Slawson, Journalist & Author, Louisa Ghevaert, CEO& Founder Louisa Ghevaert Associates, Andrew Powell KC, Lisa O’Boyle Senior Associate Solicitor Fisher Jones Greenwood LLP
Andrew Powell KC delivered a case law update covering legal developments in surrogacy, adoption, declarations of parentage and parental responsibility over the last 12 months through the prism of assisted reproduction. Later in the day, he provided a further legal update on transgender parenting. This was followed by a session which looked at the particular legal issues and challenges associated with representing young people in the family justice system. Professor Vasanti Jadva discussed research findings about the motivations, experiences and outcomes for parents, children and families created through co-parenting and highlighted that these arrangements can be complex to define and explain in practice. Barrister Rachel Cooper went on to deliver a session which looked at how the Family Court has defined and recognised ‘family’ in case law and the range of different factors it can take into account including: intention, practice, documentation, commitment, living arrangements and the nature of relationships.
Find out more about Donor Conception and Co-Parenting Law.
There was also important insight from a panel who gave lived experience of platonic co-parenting, polyamorous families and trans parents. They highlighted a myriad of real life difficulties, the need for greater awareness and law reform to encompass their family structures.
Images: Rachel Cooper, Barrister at Coram Chambers, Professor of Family Psychology Vasanti Jadva, Andrew Powell KC 4 PB Chambers
Transgender Parenting
Having recently represented a trans man who encountered serious difficulties obtaining legal parentage and birth registration for two children conceived by privately arranged artificial conception with donor sperm by his fiancé/wife in the test case FZ v MZ [2025] EWHC 3338 (Fam), Louisa Ghevaert Associates has direct experience of navigating current legal frameworks that do not reflect the lived experience of trans parents and leaves some without automatic legal parentage for their children at birth. As a result, it is important to carefully navigate legal parenthood status in family cases involving transgender individuals and legal rights governing the care and upbringing of their children under English law. You can read more as follows:
Transgender Parenting & Children Law: FZ v MZ & FZ v Y Council [2025]
