WHAT IT'S REALLY LIKE BEING A DIVORCE LAWYER

Ayesha Vardag helps the rich and famous navigate their marital splits...

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Like every divorce lawyer, Ayesha Vardag has heard it all when it comes to reasons for marital breakdown. But the divorcees Ayesha, who is in her 50s, deals with are far from run-of-the-mill – she works exclusively with the super rich. She has handled the marital splits of business tycoons, international footballers, celebrities and royalty – in one case, she helped Malaysian former beauty queen Pauline Chai win a cool £64 million.

The catalyst for her firm Vardags – which she set up 20 years ago from the spare room of her home in Islington, London – came from her own emotional turmoil. Ayesha believed her first husband was the love of her life, and when their marriage ended, she was left feeling very low – and determined to make divorce a more positive experience for others. She tells us what her job is really like…

What did you want to be as a child?

A novelist. Writing is something I've loved all my life, but I grew up as an only child of a single mum, and we were permanently broke, which made me very conscious of financial security. I decided to train as a lawyer. I worked in commercial law for nine years before switching to family law in 2005, when my own divorce lawyer hired me as his junior. The turbulence of my own past helps me form a bond with my clients.

How does your morning start?

I get up around 6am, shower, do my make-up and choose an outfit – I love clothes and express myself through them. There are more than enough gloomy black suits in the legal world, nd I like to bring some colour. I tend to skip breakfast – instead, I’ve adopted the Italian habit of starting my day with a double espresso.

When do you start work?