Emma Hatley

Spear’s Review

There have been some ‘grand dames’ of divorce, says Stewarts super-solicitor Emma Hatley. But some of them are reaching the twilight of their careers, ‘and there’s been some young blood coming through and challenging them’.

Spear’s Family Lawyer of the Year in 2017, Hatley recently acted in several of the most complex cases pending in the High Court (often with multiple parties disputing across jurisdictions), examining invariably difficult and contentious issues in the family division.

Known for her discretion, she is described by one peer as ‘the essence of what HNW clients want and need’ in a family lawyer: ‘highly intelligent, industrious, fast, constructive… [with] no sitting on the fence or waffle.’

Adviser Profile

Emma is top ranked in the directories as a ‘Star Individual’ and has a reputation as an excellent technical lawyer and tough negotiator, who quickly wins the confidence of her clients. Emma is described as a ‘superb, no-nonsense and efficient’ lawyer, and as being ‘in a league of her own. She is a tenacious litigator — calm and measured as well as a real fighter with grit if necessary.’ Emma specialises in complex family cases for high net worth individuals, usually with an international dimension. Her cases often involve trusts, family businesses, inherited wealth and tracing assets. Her international work encompasses the relocation of children. She has a track record for achieving discreet, negotiated settlements.