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Maguire Family Law

Securing a national platform for a boutique law firm

Coercive control

The Brief

Maguire Family Law is a boutique family law firm with offices across the North West. In a competitive marketplace, MFL wanted to stand out from its competitors and drive enquiries for its well reputed divorce services.

Activity

RMS wanted to identify a topic that the firm could ‘own’ and raise awareness of on a national scale. A brainstorm revealed that MFL had been handling an increasing number of divorce cases involving coercive control and as a result, had developed a specialism in advising clients experiencing this often-hidden form of abuse.

It was decided that a PR campaign should focus on this topic, with the aim of highlighting the issue, educating the public, and ultimately, positioning Maguire Family Law as a trusted expert in handling divorce cases with an element of coercive control.

To shape the campaign, RMS identified key themes and angles and commissioned a nationally representative survey of 2,000 UK adults to uncover public awareness and opinions on coercive control.

The research revealed:

1 in 5 adults in the UK have been the victim of coercive control

Over a third are unaware it’s a crime

14% of respondents who had experienced a coercively controlling relationship were still in it

Financial dependence was cited as the biggest reason for staying in an abusive relationship

Young people and men showed greater tolerance toward behaviours classified as coercive or controlling

Using this data, RMS developed a multi-faceted PR strategy:

Media relations: We offered first sight of the research findings to The Independent, which resulted in a substantial article including commentary from MFL’s managing director, James Maguire. Following this, we pitched the story and secured coverage and commentary in a number of other leading media titles.

Legal trade coverage: Placements in legal trade publications, further reinforced the firm’s authority on coercive control cases, opening up the opportunity for referrals from other firms.

BBC collaboration: RMS worked with BBC producers and social affairs correspondents to develop an in-depth segment on coercive control. RMS identified and provided a case study of a woman who had been a victim of coercive control, facilitating her meeting with the BBC’s social affairs correspondent to share her story.

The feature included:

An online article.
Multiple TV appearances.
– Coverage on BBC Radio Manchester.
– Inclusion in BBC bulletins and newsletters.

Ongoing expert positioning: Following the BBC coverage, MFL was invited to contribute to several discussions including:

– A panel discussion organised by BBC Radio 5 Live, led by Nicky Campbell, featuring MP Jess Phillips alongside industry leaders.
– A BBC Radio 4 segment exploring coercive control in legal proceedings.

Beyond media relations, RMS developed supporting content including:

• A dedicated landing page on the firm’s website

• PPC & SEO activity to support PR efforts

• Blog posts breaking down survey findings

• Social media assets

• A video series

Results

The campaign elevated MFL’s profile, delivering exceptional results:

National and broadcast coverage: Multiple BBC TV and radio slots, a feature in The Independent, and legal trade press.

Audience reach: 745M potential reach, with 932,000 estimated direct coverage views.

Engagement: 37 interactions across coverage, including comments and shares, with consistently positive sentiment.

Search impact: Following the BBC coverage (29/01/25) branded search impressions increased by 29% and clicks by 46% in the period of 29/01-28/02. This uplift in branded searches suggests that people actively sought out Maguire Family Law after seeing the media coverage.

Long-term impact: Maguire Family Law continues to be recognised as a leading voice on coercive control, with ongoing invitations to participate in national media discussions.

Through strategic media outreach, compelling storytelling, and expert positioning, RMS successfully cemented Maguire Family Law as a trusted authority on coercive control in divorce proceedings.

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