5SAH & CALA In-Person Seminar | Child Abduction & Asylum: Where are we now?

Child Abduction & Asylum: Where are we now?

CALA (Child Abduction Lawyers Association) and 5SAH Chambers are hosting a panel of experts who specialise in Child Abduction and Asylum cases. Chaired by Mark Smith, we will be joined by Dr Emma Palmer, Sheroy Zaq and Sarah Atkins. 

Please note, the Seminar is for legal professionals only.

To confirm a place at the Seminar and/or the drinks, please RSVP via the link here.

Seminar Details

• Date: 28 November 2024
• Location for Seminar: 5 St Andrew's Hill, EC4V 5BZ
• Start Time: 5:30pm arrival (5:45pm prompt start)  
• Price per Ticket: Free in-person event for legal professionals only. Spaces must be reserved in advance to gain entry to the event.

Post-Seminar Festive Drinks

• Location: Counter King's Wardrobe, St Pauls. Start Time: 6:45pm onwards

Speakers

Mark Smith, Barrister at 5SAH

Mark Smith is a barrister at 5SAH practising in family, extradition, and immigration law. He has particular expertise in cases involving cross-border issues and parallel proceedings across multiple jurisdictions. Mark regularly appears in cases with an international element before the Family Division. He is appointed to the Attorney-General's Panel and is instructed by the SSHD in both immigration and family matters.

Dr Emma Palmer, Family Solicitor from MSB

Emma specialises in international family matters and complex children proceedings representing parents, children and wider family members. She is a Fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers, a Resolution accredited specialist in: child abduction, forced marriage & honour based abuse and domestic abuse and a member of The Law Society’s Children Panel. Emma is instructed by the Official Solicitor to act for parents abroad in child abduction cases. 

Sheroy Zaq, Immigration, Asylum & Public law Solicitor from Payne Hicks Beach 

Sheroy is a Senior Associate with over ten years of experience in the spheres of immigration, asylum and public law. He is ranked as an ‘Associate to Watch’ in Chambers and Partners 2025 (Administrative & Public Law: Traditional Claimant). The legal directories describe him as having “superb judgement” and being “a joy to deal with”. Most recently, Sheroy acted as a lead solicitor in the landmark judicial review challenge to the Government’s Rwanda policy, resulting in victory for his clients at the UK Supreme Court in November 2023.

Sarah Atkins, Senior Lecturer in Faculty of Business & Law at the University of Portsmouth

Ms Sarah Atkins is a Senior Lecturer in Faculty of Business & Law at the University of Portsmouth, having joined UoP in 2015. Her research area is in human rights of asylum-seeker and refugee children, having published several peer-reviewed articles on this and related topics (see here). Prior to that, she practiced as a solicitor in both England and in the Republic of Ireland. She is a graduate of University College Cork, Ireland.