DARREN WHITE is 25, from Chester, and is a solicitor specialising in contact issues within family law, including cases involving domestic violence.
Mr White works for Morecrofts Solicitors in its Hamilton Square office, Birkenhead.
This was his working day:
7am:Get up for work, have a shower, and then breakfast while catching up with BBC News.
7.40amAs I live in Chester and work in Birkenhead, I commute by train in order to miss the morning traffic. It gives me a chance to plan the day ahead and read the newspapers.
8.15amArrive at the office, which is located in Hamilton Square, and open the post and check my emails. Luckily, today there are not too many emails. There have been times when there have been hundreds to respond to before even starting my day.
8.45am:I begin reading my files for the forthcoming day. One case I have is a mother who is refusing to allow the father of her son to have contact with him, as there have been issues of domestic violence in the past.
10am:Time to make my way to Birkenhead County Court – usually for a directions hearing or two. A case involving domestic violence is one of them. I negotiate with my opponent and come to an agreement with my client that we will allow contact on an interim basis at a contact centre where this can be supervised. The client is happy with this, so I go before a District Judge to get the order made. We’re back at court again in a month to see how contact is progressing.
12pm:Today, I luckily have time for an hour lunch break, but can’t resist taking the odd call or two from some of my colleagues located at Morecrofts’ other offices in Crosby, Woolton and Liverpool city centre.
1pm:Back to the office where I meet one of my clients, Mr A. He is a dad who hasn't been allowed to see his son for two months by his ex-partner. I take down as much information from him as I can and then advise him accordingly as to how he can get to see his son. Maybe all that is required is a simple letter or some mediation to sort things out. There isn’t always a necessity to issue court proceedings.
3pm:Catch up on my typing for the day, including telephone notes, letters and attendance notes.
4.30pm:Check through my letters, sign off the same and get them posted off. There is a lot of paperwork to be addressed.
5pm:Catch my train back to Chester to see my wife, Kerry, briefly for dinner before she goes to work at the Women's hospital in Liverpool, where she is a nurse.
7.30pm:Read legal updates and conduct any legal research I may need to do. By looking through trade press, I notice an article following up on the announcement that family courts now have the power to help resolve disputes between estranged parents over contact arrangements for their children.
10.30pm:Go to bed nice and early in an attempt to be ready and raring to go for the next day.
