When a marriage, civil partnership or other relationship breaks down, the parties usually need advice on the best and most equitable way to divide joint assets. In some cases, a couple will decide before marrying on the arrangements to be made concerning finance and property should the marriage eventually break down. Financial remedy is the term used to describe court-ordered distribution of assets when a marriage or civil partnership breaks down. The court starts this process from a position of equality, but also takes account of other circumstances as required by the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973. These are:
Distributing the assets of a broken marriage is by no means straightforward and you should get in touch as soon as you possibly can to make sure you are guided by expert advice. We have to start with full and frank disclosure and, unless you provide information that is both complete and accurate, any advice we give you is likely to be imprecise. The document used by the court is called Form E and we can help you to complete this.
A marriage’s most valuable asset is often the family home, but it must be remembered that the property’s emotional value may be as important as its financial value. This can make judgements on its future challenging.
The needs of any dependent children will take priority and the result of this is often that the parent who will be the children’s primary carer stays in the marital home with the children. Where this does not happen, the court will want to see that they are provided with sufficient funds to meet their housing needs. Once again, expert guidance in these complex matters, which will be decided on the merits of the case, will help avoid the kind of negative result that can – quite literally – ruin lives.
Applications for interim maintenance can be made when a partner stops making mortgage repayments and meeting other expenses and will succeed if the partner’s means are enough to be able to meet all or some of the payments. The court will take account of pensions, and information on their value must be shared equally and accurately by the parties. The court may wish to order that the party with a higher pension fund shares it with the other partner or maybe order that the differences be offset from other assets. As in almost everything discussed here, however, the court is unlikely to order what you have not asked for – so get expert advice before an inappropriate award is made and not afterwards. Bear in mind, however, that divorce proceedings must be commenced before you apply to the court for financial remedy.
Not infrequently, parties are able to reach an amicable agreement on the division of assets. That is a highly desirable result – but our strong recommendation is that the course be asked to issue a consent order ratifying the agreement. If you told that, you will be able to enforce the agreement if at some point in the future the other party wishes to renege on it.
Because every case is different, forecasting how much it will cost to go to court is difficult, and so we offer packages and fixed fees. It is sometimes possible to apply to the court for one party to pay the other’s costs, and this may sometimes be an interim arrangement where the two parties have significantly different incomes or assets, with the final distribution of costs remaining to be fixed when the whole process is concluded.
Although the great majority of marriages are undertaken in the expectation that they will be for life, the reality is that marriages break down and divorce is not uncommon. Signing a prenuptial agreement before marriage means greater control over what a breakdown will mean to the parties’ finances and assets. There is as yet no law in England and Wales validating prenuptial agreements but a number of high profile cases suggest that the courts will endorse an agreement provided that it meets certain criteria.
A prenuptial agreement, commonly known as a “pre-nup”,is entered into before marriage and lays down the distribution of assets should the marriage end in divorce. When separation occurs between couples who have no prenuptial agreement in place, the court’s starting position is to divide assets equally between the two and this can be to the disadvantage of either partner who brought more money or assets into the marriage than the other. A pre-nup is designed to avoid this and can include:
If it is to validate a pre-nuptial agreement, the court will generally wish to see evidence:
Despite the lack of legal binding for pre-nuptial agreements, the court will normally seek to validate them provided that they meet these criteria and that they were properly drafted by a solicitor. The courts may ignore all or parts of the agreement that they believe not to be fair but a properly entered into agreement may be expected to influence the financial outcome strongly. A “post-nup” or post-nuptial agreement is an agreement entered into after marriage and allows the couple to create a financial plan to be put into effect in the event that the marriage ends. The same criteria apply as for pre-nuptial agreements and the agreement is doubtful if in the same fashion.
Temple Gate Solicitors are specialised in Agreements and Financial Arrangements and can help you through this process. To book a consultation with one of our legal experts contact us on 020 7183 8043 or send us a message by clicking here.
2024 Temple Gate Solicitors. All Rights Reserved
