Sheena Cherukuri

About Sheena

Sheena Cherukuri is a partner and solicitor who has practised in family and immigration law for more than twenty years. She qualified as a solicitor in 2005 and has since built extensive knowledge across both fields, which allows her to give clients a genuinely holistic approach when family and immigration issues overlap.

In family law, her experience includes representation in divorce and financial matters, injunction proceedings and child arrangement matters. She also represents parents and grandparents in care proceedings, including cases with an international element and cases involving sexual abuse and non-accidental injuries.

Sheena is an experienced specialist in immigration, asylum and human rights law. She has worked extensively with vulnerable adults and children, including victims of torture and victims of trafficking, and her main interest is in assisting victims of domestic abuse. She also acts for detained clients with asylum and human rights claims, associated bail applications and judicial review claims, and she challenges unlawful detention. Sheena works with legal aid and private clients, and speaks English, Punjabi, Urdu and Hindi.

Qualifications and accreditations

• LLB Law (Honours) and the Legal Practice Course (LPC).
• LLM in Family Law.
• Law Society accredited member of the Family Law Advanced Panel since 2010.
• Law Society accredited Level 2 Supervising Senior Caseworker since 2005.
• Member of Resolution.

Areas of law

Types of matters Sheena handles

Sheena handles a broad range of family and immigration matters. The work she takes on most often includes:

• Injunctions, including non-molestation orders, occupation orders, prohibited steps orders and specific issue orders.
• Private children proceedings, including child arrangement orders.
• Public law proceedings, including care proceedings.
• Divorce and dissolution proceedings.
• Financial remedy applications on the breakdown of a relationship.
• Enforcement, variation and appeal of family court orders.
• International family matters, including relocation and child abduction.
• Protection, human rights, spouse visa and family reunion applications.
• Settlement, naturalisation and entry clearance applications.
• Deportation, removal, detention and bail matters.
• Asylum and human rights appeals and judicial review claims.
• SET (DV) applications and Migrant Victims of Domestic Abuse Concession applications.

If you are unsure which of these applies to your circumstances, Sheena will be happy to discuss your situation with you and explain your options, so you can make an informed decision.

How Sheena helps clients

Sheena undertakes both private and legal aid work, and her extensive knowledge of family and immigration law means she can look at a client's situation as a whole rather than in isolation. She takes the time to understand what has happened, explains the options in plain language, and prepares each matter carefully so that clients always know where they stand.

Much of her work involves vulnerable clients, including victims of torture, victims of trafficking and victims of domestic abuse. She combines that sensitivity with rigorous case preparation and firm representation, whether she is acting in complex care proceedings, defending against removal or challenging unlawful detention.

Sheena treats each client's case with the same care, commitment and attention to detail, and she brings her full experience in both family and immigration law to every matter she takes on.

Sheena's career so far

Sheena's experience has been built across family and immigration law, alongside a longstanding commitment to the local community. These are some of the milestones along the way.

Specialist experience

Alongside her general family and immigration work, Sheena has particular experience in:

• Representing parents and grandparents in care proceedings, including cases involving sexual abuse and non-accidental injuries.
• Acting for vulnerable adults and children, including victims of torture and victims of trafficking.
• Representing family clients in complex matters that have been reported and have appeared in the media.
• Representing immigration clients in reported and country guidance cases.

Notable and reported cases

• M v F, H and BA [2011] EWCA Civ 273, [2011] 2 FLR 123. Guidance on the circumstances in which the existence of a child can be concealed from a married father.
• Eisha v Omar, committal for contempt of court, High Court, 13 February 2024.
• AK and SK (Christians: risk) (CG), country guidance decision on the risk to Pakistani Christians.

What to expect when you contact Sheena

Common questions