Luke Eaton

Practice Overview

Luke has a busy practice specialising in all aspects of the law as it relates to children. Luke is regularly instructed at all levels of Court and is ranked as a leading junior in the Legal 500.

• Modern Families & Surrogacy

  Luke has a range of experience in proceedings in respect of ‘modern families’, including those arising from both domestic and international surrogacy arrangements. Luke has appeared in such cases as both sole counsel and whilst being led.

  In 2023, Luke co-presented the ‘surrogacy case law update’ to the Resolution Modern Families Forum where Mrs Justice Theis delivered the keynote address.

  Luke’s experience also extends outside of the ‘more usual’ applications, including being led as junior counsel in the case of Re G (A Child) [2018] EWCA Civ 305, in which the Court of Appeal considered contact between a child and their biological grandparents.

• Children (Public Law)
  Luke is regularly instructed in care, adoption and other public law proceedings by local authorities, parents, guardians and intervenors. Luke has a wide range of experience, from contested ICO applications through to lengthy and complicated fact-finding and composite hearings (including in cases against leading counsel). Luke is often instructed in cases featuring allegations of non-accidental injury (‘NAI’) and fabricated or induced illness (‘FII’). 

   

  Luke is also experienced in proceedings involving Forced Marriage Protection Orders, Female Genital Mutilation Protection Orders and claims under the Human Rights Act 1998.

   

  Luke is regularly involved in applications to authorise the deprivation of a child’s liberty (including in the new national DoLS Court) and has provided training to a number of firms and local authorities on the subject
• Children (Private Law)
  Luke is an experienced advocate in private law children proceedings. Luke frequently represents parents and rule 16.4 guardians at every stage of proceedings and has a particular interest in complex fact-finding hearings (including in respect of domestic abuse and/or parental alienation).

  
  Luke has appeared in several important reported cases, including PS v BP [2018] EWHC 1987 (Fam) where, on appeal, Luke successfully argued that the Court’s treatment of the father (who was accused of having been abusive to the mother) was unfair and overturned the result of the previous fact-finding hearing.

  
  Luke also appeared in the linked cases of Re C (‘Parental Alienation’; Instruction of Expert) [2023] EWHC 345 and The Mother v The Father [2023] EWHC 2078 (Fam), where the President of the Family Division considered the approach to allegations of parental alienation and expert evidence in such cases.
• Domestic Violence & Injunctions

  Luke also represents clients in injunctive proceedings (under both the Family Law Act 1996 and the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 in a civil context) including where allegations of serious domestic abuse have been made and where those applications are linked to concurrent (or imminent) Children Act 1989 proceedings.

• Abduction and the Inherent Jurisdiction

  Luke accepts instructions to represent parents and local authorities in proceedings in respect of both incoming and outgoing abductions, including where children have been abducted to non-Hague Convention countries. 

• Notable Cases

  The Mother v The Father [2023] EWHC 2078 (Fam)

  Re C (‘Parental Alienation’; Instruction of Expert) [2023] EWHC 345

  Re A, B, C & D (Children) [2019] EWHC B32

  Re G (A Child) (Child Arrangements Order: Third Party) [2018] 1 WLR 2769 

  PS v BP [2018] EWHC 1987 (Fam)