This year, the International Academy of Family Lawyers (IAFL) hosted its Introduction to European Family Law ‘Virtual Kyiv’ Webinar on Friday 19th March 2021. Dr John Bonello and 8Point Law’s newest team member Dr Nicola Carbonaro attended on behalf of 8Point Law. Dr Bonello was also invited to form part of the panel of speakers from all over Europe.

The virtual webinar delved into great detail about the challenges for family lawyers of different generations by touching upon digital modes of communication and social media as its opening topic.  Lawyers from this panel discussed how the rapidly evolving digital era in which we live in is having a challenging effect for family lawyers. The panel then shifted onto how a child is given a voice from the perspectives of different jurisdictions.  The transparency of the judicial decision process, wherein the topic of private court versus private judgements was explored.  Dr Bonello discussed his professional views from a Maltese angle and additionally presented a paper outlining how the Maltese legal system caters for such a scenario, by citing recent Court judgements.

The webinar went on to discuss how the critical element of maintenance is applied in the jurisdictions of Czech Republic, Ukraine, Ireland, and England.  Finally, the webinar was concluded with discussions on divorce and financial splits.  This panel of lawyers was led by Mr William Healing from Alexiou Fisher Philipps LLP, whom Dr Bonello has had the pleasure of working with in the past.

This virtual webinar was both a learning opportunity as well as an invaluable experience for 8Point Law as it allowed the firm to expand its knowledge on several European Family Law jurisdictions.