Mark Harper

Practice Areas

Divorce and family law, including advising on the treatment of trusts on divorce, and acting for trustees. International pre-nuptial and post-nuptial agreements. International children's relocation.

Career

Mark Harper joined Withers in 1999, later becoming Global Family Practice Leader. He joined Hughes Fowler Carruthers in September 2014. Mark Harper was European Chapter President of the International Academy of Family Lawyers March 2014-May 2016, and has acted in numerous reported cases, on the treatment of trusts on divorce, and on pre-nuptial agreements.

Chambers UK 2024 and Chambers HNW 2024 reconfirm Mark’s Band 1 ranking. The Guide describes Mark as “highly professional and pre-eminent on trust issues,” with a source enthusing that he is “a very efficient lawyer, who has a full understanding of the different foreign laws systems, which is the key for international family cross-border cases.” Chambers UK 2023 praises Mark for being “an extremely good lawyer who is a go-to on difficult financial cases and trusts,” and “very clever, hard-working and good to deal with.” A source comments “Mark is a very good, technical lawyer who is second to none in complex international finance work,” while another notes he “has a huge amount of experience and expertise.”

The Legal 500 UK 2024 reconfirms Mark’s ranking as a ‘Leading Individual’ with a source enthusing “if I had to recommend a solicitor to act for a trust who had been brought into family proceedings I would name Mark Harper of Hughes Fowler Carruthers as a go-to solicitor.” The Legal 500 UK 2022 notes that he is “fantastic and I would highly recommend him (in fact I have already) to anyone getting a divorce” further adding Mark was “very, very strong” when needed, and “could see what was happening.”

Mark has been ranked as one of the Top 10 / Top Flight family lawyers in Spear's Wealth Management's Family Law Index for almost 10 years and was described as "without doubt the best technician in London". Spear's have said "Mark has the intellectual rigour to outwit every opponent in a jurisdiction case" and "he does not care whose toes he treads on in pursuing his clients' objectives". Mark Harper is co-author of the Third Edition leading textbook: International Trust and Divorce Litigation.

Professional Memberships

Law Society; Resolution; International Academy of Family Lawyers

Personal

Mark has a keen interest in architecture and classic cars. He is Chairman of a company which runs five acres of Regency gardens in Brighton.