We understand how difficult the breakdown of a relationship can be and that priorities vary considerably in each case and we therefore offer a free initial consultation to assess your needs and to determine the best route to a successful outcome for you.
Whether personal issues, financial considerations or disputes concerning your children, we appreciate that this is a worrying and stressful time for you and that such problems can result in complex legal issues that need to be resolved. Naturally, you need an adviser who has detailed legal knowledge, but just as importantly, you need an adviser who will adopt an understanding approach to your case. We combine relevant expertise and experience in the law with a commitment to reduce the stress caused to you and your family as far as possible. We understand what it takes to enable you to move on.
To arrange your free consultation, please call us now on 020 8974 7490
Our team can support you with a range of personal and family issues, for example:
- Cohabitation agreements
- Pre and post nuptial agreements
- Relationship breakdown (whether you’re married or not)
- Civil partnerships
- Divorce
- Separation
- Financial settlements and ancillary relief
- Property disputes
- Maintenance
- Pension provision including pension sharing and pension splitting
- Domestic violence (including non molestation injunctions where you are threatened with, or are the victim of domestic violence and occupation orders where you cannot continue to live under the same roof)
- Disputes concerning children, for example residence and contact disputes, social services involvement and care proceedings, emergency orders
Grounds for divorce
You will only be granted a divorce if you can demonstrate that your marriage has suffered an 'irretrievable breakdown'. To do this you must show that your marriage is beyond repair because:
- your husband or wife has committed adultery;
- your husband or wife's behaviour is such that you cannot reasonably be expected to live with them;
- your husband or wife left you at least two years ago, without good reason and refuses to return;
- you have been separated from your husband or wife for two years and they agree to the divorce; or
- you have been separated from your husband or wife for five years or more.
If a divorce decree is against your religion, we can give you advice about other forms of separation and can use civil action to help you get a religious divorce.
The Divorce Process
The legal formality for getting a divorce is a relatively straightforward process. What is generally much less straightforward is sorting out the practical issues associated with a divorce, such as where each person will live, who gets what, and arrangements for any children. Before agreeing matters with your husband or wife, it is wise to seek our advice about your rights and the options available to you.
Divorce Petition
If you are applying for the divorce we will usually start the process by writing a letter to your husband or wife to tell them that you are planning to start divorce action. This letter will also recommend that your husband or wife gets independent legal advice if they have not done so already.
We will then send a divorce petition to the court, this petition sets out whether you will be asking your husband or wife to pay for the costs of the divorce or to provide some other sort of financial support for you or your children. the court will send a copy of this petition to your husband or wife for their solicitor to reply within seven days.
Once your husband or wife or their solicitors have replied to the petition, you will need to confirm your intention to go ahead with the divorce application by making a sworn statement or 'affidavit'. Your application is then lodged with the court. The original marriage certificate has to be sent to the court at the same time with the court fee which is presently £300.
Statement of arrangements for children
If you have children under the age of 16 (or between 16 and 18 in full-time eduction), you will need to fill in a form called a 'statement of arrangements for children'. This asks for details about your children such as:
- who they will live with
- where they are educated and
- what your plans for them are, including any arrangements for visits by, or contact with, the other parent.
When the court comes to consider the divorce papers, they will take this information into account to make sure that the children are properly provided for.
Decree Nisi
Once the court is satisfied that you should have a divorce, it sets a time and date for the judge to pronounce the 'decree nisi'. You do not need to go to court for this. It is simply statement from the court that the divorce can go ahead and the divorce papers are approved, you are not actually divorced at this stage.
If at this point you and your husband or wife have not agreed who should be paying the legal costs for the divorce, the judge pronouncing the decree nisi will make the decision for you. The application to the court is made on a standard form with a court fee which is presently £40.
Decree Absolute
Six weeks after the decree nisi, the person applying for the divorce can now have the divorce made 'absolute'. This legally dissolves the marriage. However, you are usually better to wait until financial matters ('ancillary relief') have been settled before finalising the divorce in this way.
Please phone us on 0208 974 7490 or email us to speak to a solicitor today.
