#Divorce #FinancialOrder #DivorceRisk #DivorceAdvice
Hey everyone! 💬 How important do you think is the financial order in a divorce? 🤔 Let’s dive into a real-life situation – a friend of mine in England is going through a divorce and they’ve decided to skip the 23-page long financial order form because they’ve already split things amicably. But, what risks could they be facing by not formalizing their financial separation? Here are some questions to ponder:
– Can his ex claim anything from him in the future, especially if he receives an inheritance?
– What happens if he gets a better job or remarries someone with better financial standing?
– Will competition winnings or premium bonds be up for grabs?
They also have a child, so a separate agreement for childcare and child maintenance must be in place. 🧒👶 Have any of you heard of a shorter declaration form stating an amicable financial split? Or any advice on how to ensure financial security post-divorce for both parties?
Let’s brainstorm some solutions and share our thoughts! 💭 #SupportAndAdvice #DivorceStruggles #LegalAdvice
Without a financial order, one side can start the process again eg after an inheritance or if they are skint. It’s best practice to do it for a final settlement.
It’s vital. If he wills the lottery tomorrow she can make a claim against him or vice versa. If she starts a hugely successful business next week he can make a claim. And even if these claims are unsuccessful the legal headaches to resolve then can be a real issue and financial cost to fight/defend. Absolutely essential.
She’s get half of everything or more when they decide to do the paperwork in the future.
100% get a financial order. Otherwise the claims stay live and trust me I have clients 10+ years separated with their ex making a claim.
Now about inheritance specifically, that’s prima facie non matrimonial and not up for sharing unless a) it becomes mixed with matrimonial assets and/or b) it is required to meet ‘need’. The court will want to ensure each party’s needs, capital and income are met.
If you remarry you lose the opportunity to make a financial claim (unless that box was ticked on the divorce application itself or application for a financial remedy has already started) except in relation to pensions.
Idk what form you signed but unless that was a consent order sealed by the court then I have some news for you…
If a financial order isn’t done then they could potentially make a claim years in the future (by which point they may have moved on with someone else, who may not be too happy if the house/things you own with them have to be sold or given to your ex from 20 years ago because a bit of paperwork was too much for you). The only thing that ends the claim is them remarrying so if spouse A had remarried but spouse B hadn’t, B would still have a claim against A but A would have no claim against B (because A has remarried).
Tbh in Scotland the financial separation is a mandatory part of the divorce process and I think it is completely bonkers it isn’t mandatory in England because of the situations it can result in.
Also when I say you, take that to mean friend.
Sounds like they are looking at the form for disclosure if they have agreed everything there is an alternative much simpler form they can do.
Financial Order us for both of their safety. It’s to ensure they can’t come back for further funds later down the line.
23 pages isn’t that much. Make time sit down and complete it. Will take 30mins. Probably less than that. Security provides peace of mind and stress later.
They’ll likely need to hire solicitors to deal with the divorce as they’ve got a child together. So get it done alongside that.
I’m currently in the process of getting divorced (conditional order already granted) but we’d already split the house (50/50 deposits, 50/50 mortgage contributions, and I bought him out) so in theory the financial consent order should be agreed in court as just walking away from the rest (I’m not interested in his pension, and mine is worth considerably less than his so not really worth pursuing).
I’m about £2k in sols fees so far but hoping it’ll be sorted soon. The divorce application we did ourselves online so that’s just the financial consent order costs.
I’m about to buy a house with my boyfriend and thinking about kids, it just protects me from my ex coming back into my life later down the line. He doesn’t deserve anything I’ve worked hard for since we split.
It stops them getting anymore money out of you.
Avoiding it work really well, until one dude wants more that they are getting.
They might be friendly now, but that can change.
Get it done now and you won’t have to worry about it. 23 pages might seem like a lot, but it’s not when your ex has agreed fir your kid to go on a tour if Europe and as you and working a d she us not, expects you to pay. Or one of you decides that private school is the way and both of you are now in the hook etc etc etc.
It’s critical. They risk their financial security until it’s done.
There was a similar post on here of a legal sub recently. An old story was dug up about a wife making a claim against ex husband about 30 years after the divorce. He’d launch a very successful business and she ended up with a huge payout. All because they didn’t finalise every aspect.
You never know what tomorrow will bring. One party could have an accident, get addicted to pain meds and then scramble for every penny they can.
The other could win the jackpot on premium bonds and dig up old wounds and prompt the ex to want some of that win.
There is no time limit on making a financial claim if there is no line drawn in the sand.
They’re already doing paperwork anyway, what’s one more form (23 pages or otherwise)? Yes, it might take a few more hours to complete, but it could well save a lot of time, and potentially a lot of money, further down the line.
I cannot stress this enough – They need to get a financial consent order and it needs to be drafted by a solicitor. It is so important to have it drafted properly as it needs to include certain provisions and must be submitted to the court for sealing. Other comments have touched on this but if they do not get a financial consent order, both parties’ claims for capital, income, and pensions cannot be severed just by divorce alone which means in the future, either party could revive their claims and potentially reap the benefit of ANY assets, including post separation accrual of wealth (inheritance, lottery wins etc).
The 23 page form is the D81 form that is a disclosure document that goes alongside the financial consent order to enable the court to determine whether they think the agreement is fair in the circumstances.