Financial separation

There is no automatic fifty-fifty split. Equal sharing is the starting point for assets built up during the marriage, but it is a starting point rather than a default. The court considers all the circumstances - needs, contributions, the length of the marriage, what is right for any children - and the outcome is often something other than a straight 50/50.

Pensions are frequently the single largest asset in a marriage, sometimes larger than the family home, and dealing with them properly is often what distinguishes a strong settlement from a weak one. Three routes are available: pension sharing (a clean division of the fund itself, by court order); offsetting (one party retaining more of another asset in exchange for less of the pension); or earmarking (a share of the income when it is drawn). Overlooking pensions is the most common settlement error, and one of the hardest to put right after the event.

Business interests form part of the matrimonial pot and must be disclosed on Form E in the same way as any other asset. Where one party owns or co-owns a company - including a sole-director limited company - the value, the income it generates and how it might be realised all come into the picture. We frequently work with forensic accountants on valuation, and there are several ways to deal with a business in a settlement without forcing a fire sale.

Property portfolios - second homes, buy-to-let, inherited properties - are dealt with in the same framework as the main residence: disclosed, valued and brought into the settlement. The mix of how each property is owned, what mortgages sit against it and what tax would be triggered on sale or transfer all shape what is realistic. There is usually more than one workable structure, and choosing well makes a meaningful difference.

Moving out does not change your interest in the property. What it can change is the day-to-day picture - who is paying the mortgage, where the children are living - so the practical consequences are worth talking through before any decision is made. We can help you weigh that up.

Both parties are under a duty of full and frank disclosure. The court takes non-disclosure seriously and has tools to address it: drawing inferences, reopening settlements, making costs orders. Where we suspect something is missing, we will say so and consider the right next step.

A consent order is the court-approved document that makes a financial settlement binding and enforceable. Without one, what looks like a clean agreement leaves either party free to bring a financial claim years later - even after divorce. Every settlement we negotiate is captured in one.

Most couples do. Direct negotiation, solicitor-led correspondence or mediation will resolve the great majority of settlements. The court sits as a backstop, and the consent order - even where fully agreed between the parties - still needs the court's approval to make it binding.