There is no blueprint that works for everyone, but these are the things that you should be thinking about before embarking on your divorce journey.
Start paying closer attention to your money and assets – gather together important documents such as bank statements, mortgage or loan documents including information about your spouse’s employment, income and any other assets they may have. If possible, get an up-to-date valuation of any property.
Seek both expert legal and financial advice – from an experienced divorce lawyer like me or for expert financial advice, from an experienced independent financial advisor. They can help you reach informed decisions regarding the division of assets and property including pensions.
Get emotional support – having family and friends to support you is great however they won’t always give you the unfiltered advice that you might need. It is important that you can control your emotions and approach them with a calm, level head as being reactionary in the moment can heighten tension with your spouse making it harder for you to reach an amicable agreement and of course it can have a far-reaching effect upon your children.
Nestled in the heart of Lancashire, I've dedicated my career to providing honest and constructive legal advice in matters of matrimonial and family law.
This is an important step if you are seeking to reach a legally binding agreement with your spouse regarding your property, income, and assets. Since April 2022, you can only apply for a divorce using the “no fault” procedure. Once the divorce proceedings have been issued and served upon your spouse, there is then a 20-week cooling period before you can apply for the next stage of the divorce, which is the conditional order stage.
A good divorce lawyer will tell you that it is extremely important to seek financial disclosure from your spouse before you make any decisions regarding your property, income, and assets. The reason for this is that your lawyer, or your financial advisor, will not be able to give you advice about what is fair and reasonable if they are not in possession of the full facts.
The division of any property, income, or assets will depend on your length of marriage, your respective income and earning capacities, the needs of the parties and any contributions that have been made by either or both of you. In most cases these issues can be resolved through negotiation or mediation. Court Proceedings should always be a last resort.
If you find yourself at a crossroads and in need of expert legal advice, you have come to the right place.
The issue of where your children will live, and the payment of child support maintenance are two of the most emotionally charged issues that I come across. In most cases these issues should be resolved through negotiation or mediation. It is also important that your children do not hear you squabble about these issues.
After the pronouncement of the conditional order in the divorce proceedings there is a waiting period of 6 weeks and 1 day before you can apply for your final divorce order. At this stage any arrangements that have been agreed or determined by the court can be made into a legally binding arrangement. It is usually sensible to not apply for the final divorce order until your financial arrangements have been legally formalised, especially if there are pensions to consider.
This website page is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For personalised advice tailored to your specific circumstances, please contact me to book an initial consultation either by telephoning me on 01733 303453 or by emailing me at helen.boynton@taylor-rose.co.uk.
I’m Helen Boynton, and I bring over 25 years experience in all aspects of family law to serve you. Nestled in the heart of Lancashire, I’ve dedicated my career to providing honest and constructive legal advice in matters of matrimonial and family law. If you find yourself at a crossroads and in need of expert legal advice, you have come to the right place.