Leaders List interview: 60 seconds with Teresa Cullen, Fladgate

Date: 14 Jun 2023

Ashleigh John

This week’s 60-second piece is dedicated to Teresa Cullen, Partner at Fladgate.

Tell Citywealth’s readers about your role.

I am a partner in the family team at Fladgate LLP based in Holborn/Covent Garden. My practice covers all aspects of family work, financial issues, children issues, divorce and separation, pre- and post-nups, often with an international element. I am a family mediator, collaborative lawyer and a qualified psychotherapist (having trained at the Tavistock).

Does your training and work as a psychotherapist influence your work as a family lawyer?

I have to be cautious to keep the two distinct, having said that it is undoubtedly helpful where say settlement discussions are becoming immersed in conflict to perhaps have some deeper insight into why the negotiations have become so ‘stuck’. From a personal point of view, I always find it interesting to consider the ‘couple fit’ or why a couple came to be together and why this is no longer working for them. I do think there is a danger in some of the media articles I see and discussion about personality disorders and narcissism. There is a danger in attributing labels to one half of the couple. Having said that I think it is really important to recognise a true narcissist (and to act with knowledge) and to distinguish this from somebody who is simply behaving very badly.

What does a typical day look like for you?

I can honestly say that no two days are the same. Usually the day starts with an early walk with the dog followed by emails and then a mixture of court hearings, meetings, and catching up with clients and colleagues. What I do know is that whatever I plan is usually subject to change! So a certain flexibility is a necessity.

Tell us about interesting client instructions.

I like instructions that give me the chance to think creatively about how to problem solve a client’s issue.  At the moment I am trying to ‘defeat’ a pre-nuptial agreement made many years ago with a significant French and German interest, and of course there were a number of interesting cases in the last few months in which various members of the judiciary gave their thoughts as to the effectiveness and likelihood of enforcement of pre-nuptial agreements.

I am also preparing for a private FDR hearing where we are leaving no stone unturned to achieve a settlement. The increasing costs of litigation, combined with the backlog and delays which we sadly face at court means that the availability of private out of court ways of settling cases have to be seized upon in most cases.

What challenges do your clients face and how are you helping your clients to overcome them?

As I mentioned there are significant challenges for clients in how to cope with the court system, the delay and quite frankly the cost of pursuing or defending financial proceedings following a divorce or proceedings relating to their children. On an emotional front I think the main challenges for clients are how to deal with taking difficult financial decisions which can affect them for a very long time, at a time of great stress and uncertainty. They are often facing a new future, often not one they ever thought might happen. This may be their decision, which can come with an element of guilt and regret, or it may be a decision that has been taken by their spouse or partner and perhaps even sprung upon them, turning the life they thought they were planning for with their family literally upside down. I think it is particularly difficult for parents who are often trying to support their children at the time of the breakdown of a relationship, I think it is a truism that children need their parents most at a time when their parents are often least able to support them. I think one of our roles as family lawyers is to help them seek assistance and support in a way that feels right for them and their family whether that is therapeutic or other support, or through discussions with advisers, both financial and emotional/educational in respect of their children. 

What is your proudest professional achievement?

I am very fortunate to still be in contact with a large number of lawyers who trained with me during their training contracts. It is a pleasure, and source of great pride in seeing the next legal generation move through the ranks of partnership, often at senior level, and indeed to establish their own practices.

It is also a source of pride seeing clients with whom I have worked on perhaps very difficult matters regain their sense of self and move on to other relationships. I have been fortunate enough to be invited to a number of ex-client’s weddings, and it is heartening to be reminded that there is often the opportunity for people to find happiness again, to re-establish themselves in new relationships, and to rebuild family ties and regain their equilibrium and sense of happiness. Family lawyers often counsel their clients that they should consider the wider picture, including maintaining some sort of relationship (where possible) with their ex-spouse/partner in order to be able to “dance at their children’s weddings”. Maybe we should include a provision to ensure that we are invited to more wedding festivities and have the opportunity to join the dancing!

What do you consider to be the most important attributes for a leader?

• Passion
• Vision
• Empathy
• Integrity
• The hide of a rhino
• Creativity
• The ability to communicate at all levels
• And a good friend or team member who will tell you honestly when they think you have got it wrong and, as importantly, why.

Where was the last place you travelled to for work or pleasure

Quite a contrast – Durham for work, and Antigua for pleasure – one was far sunnier than the other!

If you weren’t in this industry what else might you be doing?

I quite fancy the idea of being a forensic pathologist, but maybe that’s down to watching too many episodes of Silent Witness in my youth.

How do you relax after a long day?

I am a competitive dancer (Ballroom, Smooth and Latin). I find that the concentration and focus required in dancing enables me to temporarily switch off from the day and lose myself in the music. I have been fortunate enough to compete not only at Blackpool (the home of dance in the UK), but also in Europe, and the US. If I am not dancing, then relaxing with good food, good wine and good friends will also be a welcome end to the day.