Our Team

Julia Tolson LLB (Hons)

After leaving school Julia trained to be a Registered General Nurse and then worked as a nurse for eight years before opting for a career change. Julia attended the University of Plymouth and studied law. She attained a 2.1 Honours Degree in 1993. She then studied for a year at Nottingham Law School and was awarded a Diploma in Legal Practice before commencing her two year training contract at a large legal aid practice in Devon.

After qualifying as a solicitor in 1996 Julia was offered a position as a newly qualified family solicitor where she remained until 1997 when she moved to Worcester to be with her new husband.

Julia worked as a family solicitor in Bromsgrove for over six years and was made a partner. Since then she has practised as a solicitor in three firms in Redditch and the West Midlands.

In 2003 Julia’s own marriage broke down and she was divorced. Having experienced the divorce process personally, Julia gained a much better insight into the emotional impact that divorce and relationship breakdown can make on people’s lives. She encourages all her clients to adopt a constructive and positive approach to moving forward with their lives.

In 2008 Julia established her own firm, Julia Tolson Family Solicitor in Stourbridge. In 2013 this changed to Tolson Family Law Ltd which is a small, yet successful family law practice. Julia and her assistant and legal cashier, Joanne Rathbone have worked as a team since 2006.

Julia enjoys working with people in a supportive role as a family lawyer. She has specialised exclusively in family law since qualifying and is also a trained Collaborative Lawyer.

Julia is a keen gardener and enjoys cooking and cycling. She is a member of the Stourbridge Bicycle Users Group and supports Tidy Stourbridge. Julia is a dog lover and owns a whippet called Max.

 

Joanne Rathbone ILFM (Dip)

Joanne joined the legal profession in 2006 working as a Legal Secretary and Cashier in a local law firm. In January 2009 Joanne joined Julia in her new venture.

Joanne currently works as a Legal Assistant and Cashier. Her role includes assisting Julia with the preparation of legal documents, maintaining client records and files and handling all new enquiries, therefore Joanne if often the first person with whom you will speak. Joanne is also responsible for preparing and maintaining the business accounts and also handling the day to day running of the business. 

Having obtained 9 GCSE’s at Secondary School, Joanne went on to study for her Advanced Diploma for Medical Secretaries at Halesowen College, completing this in 2003 and achieving a Credit in her final exams. Alongside this diploma Joanne also gained numerous word processing qualifications and in autumn 2007 also completed her Level 2 NVQ for IT Users.

In 2009 Joanne became a member of the Institute of Legal Finance & Management (ILFM) formerly known as the Institute of Legal Cashiers & Administrators (ILCA). In November 2010 Joanne passed her ILFM Diploma with Merit which means she is now a qualified Legal Cashier.

Joanne is currently undertaking a Family Law Paralegal course.

Joanne enjoys taking her dog Oscar for long walks around Kinver, Baggeridge and Himley and also enjoys travelling, dining out and reading.