Anne-Marie Rainsford

Call 2025
Telephone 020 7831 0222 | Email [email protected]

Anne-Marie Rainsford

Call 2025
Telephone 020 7831 0222 | Email [email protected]

Anne-Marie is a Family Barrister specialising in all matters relating to children. Her experience of over 16 years (combined between experience as a specialised children solicitor and more latterly as a barrister), has produced a wealth of experience in complex and highly emotive children and family matters. She is well known as a meticulous advocate, and prides herself on her level of client care, careful and clear advice, and robust, tenacious representation in Court.

Anne-Marie has a reputation for commitment to working with clients who experience vulnerabilities, whether that be in their communication, their learning and understanding or their mental health. She has completed the Law Society Vulnerable Witness training and the ICCA Trauma-Informed advocacy programme.

Family Law

Public Law

Anne-Marie has extensive experience in representing children, adults and local authorities in public law proceedings, including matters involving non accidental injury, sexual abuse, factitious or induced illness, welfare issues, domestic abuse, mental health and international elements.

She is skilled in working with vulnerable individuals and supporting them through the legal process, providing clear yet robust advice and ensuring a high level of client care at all times.

Anne-Marie’s recent significant cases have included:

Representing a parent at lengthy fact finding hearing as junior counsel and thereafter the welfare hearing (case to do with sexual abuse on a child)
Representing a parent as junior solicitor advocate in a lengthy fact finding hearing involving issues including FII, complex medical and mental health issues, and domestic abuse
Involvement on a successful appeal of a Care Order made at IRH stage (acting for a parent)
Representing a child including during fact finding hearing, who suffered multiple non accidental fractures in the care of their parents
Representing a child in contested Care/Placement Order proceedings involvement in closed material proceedings
Representing a mother with learning difficulties in care proceedings seeing the return of her child to her care; issues included intra-familial sexual abuse
Representing a child in the High Court in respect of applications regarding her capacity to make medical decisions

Anne-Marie has experience in DOL applications and other public law-related matters such as contested adoptions, contact with children in care applications and revocation of a placement orders.

Recent Cases

Kent County Council v M & Ors [2026]
Re H (Final Care Orders at IRH) [2025] EWCA Civ 1342

Private Law

Anne-Marie regularly acts for children as parties in their own right within private law proceeding, as we well for parents and other adults. These cases often include allegations of domestic abuse, parental alienation, sexual abuse, substance misuse and other welfare issues.

Some of Anne-Marie’s notable matters in this field have included:

Representing children in a case with cross domestic abuse and parental alienation allegations
Representing a child with a lift limiting illness in proceedings involving allegations of domestic abuse, alienating behaviours and welfare issues
Successfully opposing an application to discharge a Stay at a contested hearing (where an interim Order was subject of appeal application)
Representing children on an application for their relocation to the Middle East.

Family Law Act

Anne-Marie has experience representing parties in Non-Molestation Order proceedings. This has included representation of vulnerable victims of domestic abuse, and providing sensitive yet robust representation.

Other information

Anne-Marie has acted for third parties within care proceedings against whom orders for disclosure have been made, such as NHS Trusts. Such cases have involved challenging applications made against them for non compliance.

Anne-Marie has experiencing in representing vulnerable parties in all children matter proceedings. She undertook the vulnerable witness training in 2019 and has utilised this training in her practice. She is accomplished at working with clients who struggle with communication, both with and without an intermediary. Recently, Anne-Marie has undertaken the ICCA Trauma-informed advocacy course and utilises her skills, enhanced through this programme, to support clients affected by trauma.

Outside of her day to day court appearances, Anne-Marie is a contributor to the Butterworths Family Service and writes for Family Law Week.

In her spare time, Anne-Marie is a school governor for her secondary school.