Ben Chapman

Ben is ranked as a Leading Junior by the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners for his Financial Remedy work. He accepts instructions to sit as a Neutral Evaluator at private Financial Dispute Resolution Appointments, and also accepts instructions to represent the individual parties within them as counsel.

He deals with cases across the financial spectrum: from multi-million-pound matrimonial pots to cases with a single home catering for a family with children. He has a friendly, welcoming and understanding approach which helps individuals feel both comfortable and heard. His eye for detail and ability to grasp complex legal and factual themes, combined with his understanding of the realities and pressures of family life, allow him to offer practical solutions and realistic indications.

His civil experience assists in more difficult cases involving:

• Hidden and dissipated assets;
• Businesses;
• Extra-marital property;
• Foreign property;
• Potential intervenor issues, particularly where 3^rd parties may have interests in property with possible trust claims under TOLATA.

He also sits as an Employment Judge and a Judge of the First-Tier Tribunal (Social Entitlement Chamber).

Ben is ranked as a Leading Junior by the Legal 500 in this field having been consistently recognised as a Rising Star since 2022. Clients value him as a robust, emotionally sensitive and pragmatic practitioner. They appreciate his approachable manner. His skillset makes him particularly suitable for vulnerable clients and emotionally sensitive work, and those cases where another party is acting as a litigant-in-person.

He is an experienced trial advocate and is regularly instructed in Enforcement/Committal matters, Fact-Finding Hearings and Final Hearings with difficult and emotive subject matter, including rape and abuse towards children.

Ben regularly deals with cases involving particularly complex elements such as:

• Applications by grandparents;
• Parental influence/alienating behaviours;
• Cases involving Children’s Guardians;
• Relocation both within the UK and abroad;
• Cases where a child or party has been examined by an expert.

Case examples include:

• H (2024): Securing contact over and above the recommendations of Cafcass for a Grandmother in a case involving a Mother’s Covid-cautious lifestyle.
• K (2023): Successful enforcement application for a Father involving 54 breaches.
• R (2023): Unusual Final Hearing focussed upon the appropriateness of two costs orders previously made against Ben’s client. One was set aside, and the other reduced with the effect that his client’s costs liability halved.
• J (2023): Proving severe alienating behaviours by one parent against the other, and securing work with the Local Authority (whilst avoiding escalation to care proceedings) which has resulted in a child once refusing to speak to their parent now expressing her love for them.

M (2022): Securing the return of children to a party whose former partner had sexually abused the children.

Ben is ranked as Leading Junior by Chambers & Partners and the Legal 500 in this field. He deals with cases across the financial spectrum: from multi-million pound matrimonial pots to cases with a single home catering for a family with children. His experience in children work allows him to better understand family dynamics and offer advice and submissions that take into account the realities of family life, particularly where there are conduct arguments and in ‘needs’ cases.

His civil experience, eye for detail and ability to grasp complex legal and factual themes assist in more difficult cases involving:

• Intervenor claims, particularly where 3^rd parties may have interests in property with potential trust claims under TOLATA;
• 37 Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 applications and freezing injunctions;
• Extracting money from businesses;
• Hidden and dissipated assets
• Non-disclosure;
• Addback arguments;
• Foreign property;
• Costs arguments;
• Enforcement.

Ben’s practical and realistic approach means many of his cases settle at FDR, but where this cannot result in a fair outcome he is experienced in dealing with matters at Final Hearing.

His experience is not limited to married couples and those in civil partnerships. He acts and advises in cases involving the breakdown of other relationships where civil principles of law apply instead (whether those couples or families are co-habiting or not).

Case examples include:

• S v S (2025): Success in securing findings and addbacks worth almost £300,000 for a business sold at an undervalue, hidden vehicles, cash and jewellery.
• S v S (2025): An interesting aspect of the case involved what should happen with the family dog, with reference to the recent FI v DO case.
• B v B (2024): Interesting case involving an agricultural tie over land and whether this could be lifted for an individual with significant health needs.
• P v D (2024): Successfully defended multi-track TOLATA matter involving defences based upon undue influence and an inequitable bargain.
• K v K (2024): Successful in securing findings that a party was operating a cash business in the shadow economy, resulting in an outright transfer of the former family home.
• B v B (2023): Multi-million financial remedy matter involving a high value business and addback issues worth over £250,000. Secured settlement, including recovery on addbacks, in what the Judge described as an ‘uncrackable case’.

G v G (2021): Successful application for a former wife under s. 37 Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 obtaining a freezing order and setting aside a disposition by proving a buy-to-let property had been transferred by her former husband to a family member under a sham trust with a view to hiding it from the matrimonial pot.