Divorce & Finances

Dealing With Finances With A Dissolution Or Divorce

Divorce or dissolving a civil partnership is never a nice experience, it’s mixed with hard feelings and tough decisions. On top of this, you may be wondering how much you are able to sort out yourself and if you need legal help. This depends on you and your ex-partner, how easy do you find it to discuss financial issues? 

When working out what level of help you need, have a look at these options: 

• You could arrange it all on your own or using an online service
• You could arrange for a few legal advise sessions, but fill out any paperwork yourself. 
• You could use a mediator. 
• You could use a solicitor to go through the whole process including financial settlements and a pension sharing order. 

There is no straightforward way to tackle your finances after a split, some will be better sorting it out on their own, others will be better using legal help. 

However, some break-ups can become bitter and lengthy because couple can’t come to an agreement about finances. In that case, professional help may be needed. 

Reaching an agreement can be easier if: 

• You both agree to the dissolution or divorce
• You don’t have any children or they are grown-up and no longer financially dependent on you. 
• One of you doesn’t financially depend on the other. 
• You already agree on how your pension and property should be split. 

Some clear signs that splitting your finances might be complicated include: 

If your financial situation is complicated, reaching an agreement and separating your finances could take some time. This is when you will likely need professional help. 

• One of you (or both) owns a business. 
• One of you depends on the other. 
• One of you doesn’t agree to the dissolution or divorce. 
• You still have young children that depend on you financially. 
• You have been married or in a civil partnership that is longer than 5 years. 
• One of you has a disability or medical problem that prevents you from earning an income, this can affect your ability to earn an income. 
• One of you hs more assets ( such as the house being in one person name, or one of you has a bigger pension)

Unless your split is agreed between the both of you and amicable, it might be very tempting to feel like you can ‘punish’ your ex when dealing with your finances, you should ideally try to avoid this so you can both get back on your feet. 

Try following some of these tips: 

Do

• Try to reach an agreement about the bills in the short-term
• Try to agree as much as possible before you seek legal advice. 
• Be aware that what you think is reasonable, the law may see it in a completely different way. 

Don’t

• Don’t use the finances to get back at your partner such as running up debts, freezing accounts, or stopping payments. 
• Don’t make a decision that could help you feel better in the short-term but be bad for both you and your ex-partner in the long term. 
• Don’t ignore any bills or letters. The earlier you contact them to let them know the situation the more likely that they will be able to help. 

Even though this time may be complicated, just remember if you can sort things out amicably that’s great, however, at times its just not possible.