What’s the dope on UK divorce law regarding dividing the spoils? I always assumed 50:50. There have been no previous agreements like pre-nuptials (although I’m not sure if they’re valid anyway in the UK).
Is this in any way affected by relative earnings through the course of the marriage? I would assume that the sex of the main breadwinner is not an issue either way.
What about the nature of the relationship? We’re talking a long marriage, grown up kids, never separated (either legally, if that’s possible in the UK, or temporally) but little actual love/respect. It’s basically been a sanctified companionship.
Is it in any way affected by fidelity? On a related note, is it legally possible for one partner to kick the other out of the marriage home.
This does relate to a real life situation (not mine, thankfully), but it won’t be used in place of legal advice. I’ll assume that anyone posting is not a lawyer (or a solicitor, in this case ). Please note if you are one though.
Also, ask away if there’s any further info required. I’m trying to keep it plain just in case someone related to the situation ever reads this (extremely unlikely).
There’s no fixed rule like 50:50. The court has a very wide power to divide assets and income according to the needs and means of the spouses. It can order maintenance, either lump sum or periodic, it can order the transfer of assets from one spouse to the other or from joint names to one spouse, it can vary orders previously made.
If the spouses can reach agreement about the division of assets and income, the court will generally accept and enforce the agreement. Any agreement which the spouses can make is almost certainly going to suit them better than something devised by the court, so they are encouraged (and would be wise) to try to agree.
If the parties can’t agree and the court has to come up with a financial settlement, it shouldn’t be affected by earnings throughout the marriage so much as by earning capacity after the marriage, since this is (mostly) going to be a bigger determinant of what the spouses will need in the future. Fidelity (or any blame for the breakdown of the marriage) is not a relevant consideration.
As long as you’re married, you can’t force your spouse out of the family home, even if you happen to own it, purely because you want to. If it’s a question of domestic violence then you will be able to get the spouse out (even if they own the home) but this requires a court order. In the absence of violence, no.
Ah, I see. Thanks for the quick response. No violence involved.
This may turn messy then. I believe that one of the parties would accept a “reasonable” settlement, but I also believe that the other party would not offer one. Can anyone WAG the legal costs that might be incurred dividing up marriage assets of, say, £600k if they fought tooth and nail?
They are both retired (although they’ve both subseqently taken jobs below their abilities in order to keep themselves occupied). I believe that the wife’s pension is much higher than the husband’s. Neither have any noticeable expenses other than basic living ones and a few meals out. No holidays, no hobbies (other than shopping).
I suppose that if they did split, one would stay in the UK and one would move abroad to be with one of their children. So presumably the relative cost of properties in the two areas would be the key factor in any court-imposed descision?
). Please note if you are one though.