Financial Settlements

Going to court for a divorce financial settlement can be a stressful experience. Your concerns may be centred around a particular asset, such as whether you will get the family home, or keep your final salary pension, or your worries may revolve around physically going to court and giving evidence.

When you decide to separate or divorce it can feel as if everything is in suspended animation whilst you wait for your family solicitor to sort out your divorce and the financial settlement.  No one wants to be left in limbo whilst divorce proceedings are underway so in this article we answer your question on whether you can sell your business before you divorce. 

If you are getting divorced and your husband is self-employed you may be worried about splitting your finances on divorce. You are likely to be concerned about proving what assets your husband has, establishing the true value of those assets, working out his income and how you are going to achieve a fair divorce financial settlement.

Currently, if a couple transfers assets between them any time after the tax year in which they separated, there may be Capital Gain Tax to pay.

In respect of financial matters arising out of a divorce, you are entitled to ask the court to consider several factors relating to your circumstances and your contributions during the marriage and future contributions to the family; for example, by continuing to care for the children of the family after the marriage has been dissolved.

Simply put a “consent order” is an order made by the court with the agreement (consent) of the parties concerned. This contrasts with the order a court makes having heard arguments from both parties as to what they believe is the appropriate order for the court to make – i.e., without the agreement/consent of the parties.

The much talked about “70-30” split of family assets is without doubt an “urban myth” and should be consigned to the bin along with the “common law marriage”.

If you run a limited company, you will be naturally concerned to keep it going after your relationship breakdown. You may have built up the business over many years, and it may be providing your main livelihood. Maintaining the business is probably a key part of your plans for the future.

Pensions are a complicated asset when considering financial settlement. When legislation changed to allow ‘pension sharing’ on divorce, dealing with pensions during the divorce process became more complicated.