At RLE Law we have a wealth of experience dealing with financial matters which arise when a relationship breaks down.
We know that divorce, separation, and civil partnership dissolution can be a challenging and stressful time. Therefore, we will use all our knowledge and expert connections to make sure that you are in the best financial position possible at the end of a relationship.
As part of our comprehensive divorce and family law services, our skilled divorce solicitors can help you come to a financial settlement with your former partner which is beneficial to you and allows you to move on with your life feeling positive and optimistic.
In the majority of circumstances, we are able to help clients come to financial settlements without needing to go to court. We are also able to draft a Consent Order, where both parties have already reached an agreement regarding financial matters between themselves.
Get in touch with our specialist divorce solicitors today by calling or emailing family@rlelaw.com.
How our divorce solicitors can help you with financial matters on divorce
Our divorce lawyers specialise across all areas of family and divorce law and are particularly skilled in helping separating couples discuss money matters and come to financial arrangements in the course of divorce proceedings. Our expertise includes:
- Providing advice on methods of Alternative Dispute Resolution to agree financial matters outside of court
- Negotiating the fair division and distribution of money, assets and property
- Arranging spousal maintenance agreements
- Arranging child maintenance agreements
- Drafting and formalising your financial settlement by way of a Consent Order
- Enforcing Financial Consent Orders through the courts if necessary
- Advising and drafting a Separation Agreement if you and your spouse have not yet decided whether you want to divorce.
We can also help with the procedural aspects of implementing financial matters once you and your ex-partner have reached an agreement. For example, we can arrange for a property to be transferred from joint names into the sole name of one party and we can arrange for Pension Sharing Orders to be implemented. We can even arrange for you to speak to an Independent Financial Advisor about your financial options.
Negotiating financial settlements
We always suggest dealing with financial claims as part of the divorce process or claims against one another will merely remain open, even after the divorce has been finalised. We also recommend that you and your spouse fully disclose your financial positions to one another, and back this up with documentation before you enter into negotiations.
We can support you with advice and guidance at every stage of the process, including helping you through the disclosure and negotiation process and advising you on a sensible financial settlement.
Division of assets
Deciding how money, assets, and personal belongings should be divided is often a contentious part of any divorce. You will need to discuss:
- The family home
- Any other properties you own
- Savings
- Shares and investments
- Pensions
You will also need to discuss any debts and how they will be paid going forward.
The best way to approach negotiations with your former partner is to follow how a court would approach your matter.
Under the law, when deciding how a divorcing couple’s assets and finances should be divided, the court must ensure the arrangement is fair. A 50-50 split should normally be the starting point and a ‘clean break’ between the parties is preferable.
However, to ensure both parties’ needs are fulfilled and to enable them to maintain a good standard of living, various factors are taken into consideration, meaning the final division may not be equal. These factors are:
- The couple’s income, resources, and future earning capacity
- The welfare of any children
- The couple’s standard of living before the divorce
- The couple’s ages and the length of the marriage
- Any contributions made to the marriage by both parties, including financial and non-financial contributions (such as staying at home to raise the children)
- Any physical or mental disability
- Whether either party will lose any benefits as a result of the divorce, such as the other party’s pension benefits
- The conduct of either party, but only if it is so unjust that it cannot be disregarded
Spousal maintenance
We can help you negotiate an arrangement for spousal maintenance with your former partner, including:
- One-off lump sum payments – where the financially stronger party settles any future maintenance issues with a one-off payment or several large instalments. This option is attractive where both parties want a ‘clean break’ and no ongoing commitments.
- Ongoing spousal maintenance payments – this usually involves the parties agreeing monthly payments which enable the financially weaker party to maintain their living costs.
Child maintenance
Making decisions about children can be the most emotionally charged aspect of divorce. Our friendly and sympathetic divorce lawyers understand how important the happiness of your children is. We can help you discuss and arrange an amicable child maintenance agreement with your former spouse to help you keep any disruption to your children’s life to an absolute minimum.
Financial Consent Orders
Once you and your former partner have come to an agreement regarding your financial matters, we can help you apply to court for a Financial Consent Order to make your agreement legally binding.
This means, if, for example, your former partner stops paying spousal maintenance, we can assist you in applying to court to enforce the Order.
Why choose RLE Law Solicitors to help arrange your financial matters on divorce?
At RLE Law, we specialise in providing high-quality legal services to clients across England and Wales. Our solicitors are all experts in their areas and the advice we provide is always clear, understandable, and practical.
We know how challenging the process of divorce can be and how difficult decisions about living arrangements, children, and finances can cause a lot of stress and disagreement. We aim to help you come to a harmonious agreement with your former partner and our expertise in negotiation means we are able to help the majority of our clients settle their financial matters and arrange their divorces with minimal confrontation.
We are accredited in Lexcel, the Law Society quality mark for firms which demonstrates our excellent client care skills and legal practice management.