View Full Version : Divorce + Pensions
Anyone an expert (or experience of)...
Starting ye old divorce process .... Got petition in post today and the Prayer! is:
1. Marriage dissolved (OK with that)
2. I pay the costs of the Suit
3. Maintenance pending suit, periodical payments, secure provision, lump sum or sums and property adjustment orders for herself as may be just
4. Order under Section 25B and C for my Pension benefits inc lump sum on death
I am OK with 1
2 assume she wants me to pay Court costs - but what about her solicitor?
What does 3 & 4 mean?
Help! - I don't have a solicitor as yet (but will do by Monday PM)!
SMHarman
14-11-2008, 21:47
3 looks like maintainance, life cover on you incase you die before she does so she gets a lump sum instead of ongoing maingainance, lump sums to equalise assets, further monies to equalise any property assets you have
4. looks like the requirement to set aside and protect a lump of your pension assets for her benefit in retirement.
Remember this is the filing where you file and ask for the world. The two of you need to sit down and work out what the realistic settlement is and then get that documented.
No children by the looks of that filing.
SMHarman
14-11-2008, 22:32
Yep 1x Child
Oh, I suppose with the CSA you don't need to address child support in the divorce filing.
I guess you would want to address custody arrangements in your response.
Once you realise that Divorce is like any other adversarial court process it all makes more sense. Her divorce claim is not really any different than a business suing another busines because it has not paid the bill.
You the defendant then respond with a counterclaim. I have not paid because and on top of what you are asking for I want ot ask for...
Then it commences...
Realistically the two of you should try to sit down and go through assets and liabilities, parenting plans etc and try to end up with your lawyers and what you both want compromising along the way and get them to process that through the court. Otherwise you will end up spending a college education on lawyers fees.
There are divorce mediation specialists that can help in this process. The two of you and a mediation specialist work to what is the best compromise solution for the two of you without tens of hours of lawyers fees.
Bestest for all that. It's no fun.
cheers - I have seen a few websites recommending "mediation specialists"
Reckon she probably has a bigger pension and more savings so counterclaim could be an interesting one!
Wicked_and_Crazy
14-11-2008, 22:59
You will need to get your pension pot valued so that it can be added to all the other assets that need to be split. Generally what happens is the you will keep the pension pot (as you cant cash it in and get access to the cash) but you then lose out on other assets to the equivalent value.
AntiSilence
14-11-2008, 23:04
Just one question: If you owned your own business (not a limited company) and you get divorced, would she get any of your business even if she'd not been involved with it in any way?
Wicked_and_Crazy
14-11-2008, 23:07
Just one question: If you owned your own business (not a limited company) and you get divorced, would she get any of your business even if she'd not been involved with it in any way?
Yes, even if she hasnt contributed financially she has "looked after the family home" which has a value in terms of contributing to the family unit
AntiSilence
14-11-2008, 23:10
Yes, even if she hasnt contributed financially she has "looked after the family home" which has a value in terms of contributing to the family unit
That's it then... Never getting married!
That's it then... Never getting married!
Amen! - Once bitten and all that ...:D
Scarlett
15-11-2008, 08:52
Defn. go for mediation first and try to sirt down an come to some arrrangement between yourselves. Apparently a standard divorce costs £10K each in solicitors letters etc. if you get to that.
Mate of mine going through that right now and his ex is now ONLY communicating through solicitors letters.
etccarmageddon
15-11-2008, 09:51
if you're not good with numbers I suggest when your solicitor presents to you the figures on what you're splitting etc you then check it over with an accountant.
one of my friends - who is easy to bambosal with numbers was told she's getting a lump sum of £29k and it sounded great. until I pointed out to her that £26k of it was from original joint funds so she already owned £13k of it.
Yes, even if she hasnt contributed financially she has "looked after the family home" which has a value in terms of contributing to the family unit
It's a pity prenups aren't legally binding in this country. :(
Just a thought, but what if the 1 with the business payed their spouse an allowance of an amount sufficient to be considered payment for their role as house-wife/husband, in recognition of it being a full time job itself. Surely then it could be argued that they had already been paid for their contribution?
A ex-wife is entitled to a chuck of her ex-husbands pention
Anyone an expert (or experience of)...
Starting ye old divorce process .... Got petition in post today and the Prayer! is:
1. Marriage dissolved (OK with that)
2. I pay the costs of the Suit
3. Maintenance pending suit, periodical payments, secure provision, lump sum or sums and property adjustment orders for herself as may be just
4. Order under Section 25B and C for my Pension benefits inc lump sum on death
I am OK with 1
2 assume she wants me to pay Court costs - but what about her solicitor?
What does 3 & 4 mean?
Help! - I don't have a solicitor as yet (but will do by Monday PM)!
Don't let her get her hands on your pension, I made that mistake when I got divorced she didn't sign a clean break order meaning she was entitled to any money I came into, her solicitor was a shy one to say the least, when my pension matures in another 15 years time she'll get half of what I get each week.:mad::mad::mad:
Don't let her get her hands on your pension, I made that mistake when I got divorced she didn't sign a clean break order meaning she was entitled to any money I came into, her solicitor was a shy one to say the least, when my pension matures in another 15 years time she'll get half of what I get each week.:mad::mad::mad:
But can you counterclaim against anything she comes into also?
Including her pension ... reckon she'll have a bigger pot than me as she has more years in the bank albeit lower salary...
Well now know that I am in the wrong job - Solicitors cost between £140-£200 + VAT from those that i called today!
Is it too late to retrain:dunce:
etccarmageddon
17-11-2008, 19:01
per hour I assume!
And don't be tempted to go for the cheapest you find! A slipshod solicitor could cost you more in the long run. If you know anyone local who's been through it, try and get recommendations.
Well now know that I am in the wrong job - Solicitors cost between £140-£200 + VAT from those that i called today!
Is it too late to retrain:dunce:
That is a cheap one, my sisters boss wants £300 to walk through the door.
etccarmageddon
17-11-2008, 20:51
that's an interesting trick - £300 to walk through a door.
how much to walk through the great wall of china?
SMHarman
18-11-2008, 15:04
A ex-wife is entitled to a chuck of her ex-husbands pentionand an ex husband is entitled to a chuck of his ex wifes pension equal rights you know. An ex husband is also entitled to spousal maintainance if the wife was the earner.
---------- Post added at 09:49 ---------- Previous post was at 09:48 ----------
It's a pity prenups aren't legally binding in this country. :(unless they are woefully unfair to one party then they are generally accepted as part of the separation process and the allocations in them taken into consideration (unless it was say signed 15+ years ago when the length of the marriage becomes more of a consideration than the prenup.
---------- Post added at 09:51 ---------- Previous post was at 09:49 ----------
Just one question: If you owned your own business (not a limited company) and you get divorced, would she get any of your business even if she'd not been involved with it in any way?If you own a business (as a sole trader) then it is an asset to you just like 10k in the bank is an asset to you. It is an asset that is far harder to value but would be subject to equitable distribution. You are actually better off with a limited company as you can then equitably distribute the shareholdings rather than allocate a value.
---------- Post added at 09:53 ---------- Previous post was at 09:51 ----------
Don't let her get her hands on your pension, I made that mistake when I got divorced she didn't sign a clean break order meaning she was entitled to any money I came into, her solicitor was a shy one to say the least, when my pension matures in another 15 years time she'll get half of what I get each week.:mad::mad::mad:Unless you really got screwed she'll get half of the assets in the fund (and their subseqent capital appreciation) that were contributed during the marriage.
---------- Post added at 10:04 ---------- Previous post was at 09:53 ----------
But can you counterclaim against anything she comes into also?
Including her pension ... reckon she'll have a bigger pot than me as she has more years in the bank albeit lower salary...Yes. You will end up with 3 pots of assets to look at.
1. Those separate (and still separate) at the start of the marriage and that have had no marital funds (comingling) added to them. Say a house (that she owned outright or that the mortgage and other running costs were paid by rental income, not salary) / pensioin / bank deposit etc. These can be argued to still be an asset of that spouse solely.
2. Assets (and liabilities) aquired during the marriage. House, savings, car...
3. Assets that are both (often pensions) so you need to ascertain the value at the start of the marriage and at the end to work out the premarital aspect, the marital aspect and what is to be distributed.
That all then needs carving up, some of it falls naturally such as if you have two cars then each of you keeps yours but a cash adjustment may need to be made if one is a rolling wreck and the other brand new. Others get more complicated, such as working out the equity in a house if one is to buy the other out of the mortgage. If both of you have been earning at similar levels then you should shoot for a waiver of spousal support as you should both be able to support yourselves to equal levels on your salaries.
Child support will be down to the CSA, but your parenting plan will be up to you to decide based on your personal circumstances remembering that any daycare that the parenting plan requires will still be a joint responsibility (thinking about it along the lines that she could stay at home, get alimiony and look after the kid, or work, you both pay day care and they look after the kid).
Once that is all hammered out then you presenting to a lawyer to put in legaliese, present it to a judge to approve and away you go.
etccarmageddon
18-11-2008, 16:13
dear mr expert!
what about inheritance aquired during the marriage - for instance one of them inherts £100k from their mother on death or is handed a cheque from their mother for £100k and puts it in an account which isn't a joint account - is this viewed as something which must be sliced up 50/50 if/when they divorce?
SMHarman
18-11-2008, 16:52
dear mr expert!
what about inheritance aquired during the marriage - for instance one of them inherts £100k from their mother on death or is handed a cheque from their mother for £100k and puts it in an account which isn't a joint account - is this viewed as something which must be sliced up 50/50 if/when they divorce?No frikkin clue. I would think the arguement would be that it was intended to go to one spouse and that it has not been used to enhance the lifestyle of the marriage, has been ringfenced so should stay with that party in the same way a pre-marital asset had, however if that would cause the other spouse to be in a noticably unfair position, say you were splitting up liabilities not assets I think the inheritance would get dragged in.
If one spouse won the lottery then the win would be shared.
Not an expert just been through it recently.
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