The English Courts have wide powers in relation to making financial orders following the divorce or dissolution of a civil partnership. This includes making orders for the sale or transfer of property both in England and abroad, the payment of lump sums, the sharing of pensions and the payment of maintenance from one party to another for a defined period or an indefinite period.

What Orders can the Court make?

The Court can make a variety of orders as part of resolving a financial remedy dispute.

These include:

1. Maintenance Pending Suit: Maintenance for a spouse/civil partner to tide them over during the proceedings. It stops once the divorce/dissolution is concluded.
2. Periodical Payments: This is maintenance for an ex-spouse/civil partner which commences after divorce/dissolution. It can for a defined period or an indefinite period (Joint lives maintenance).
3. Secured Periodical Payments: These are maintenance payments which are secured against a property or assets to ensure payment. This is a rare type of order, but will be considered in exceptional cases.
4. Lump Sum Order: This is a payment of a lump sum of money from one party to another. There is no limit on the amount that can be ordered and it can be ordered to be paid by instalments.
5. Property Orders: Various Orders.

Factors the Court must consider

There is no magic formula available to the Courts in resolving financial disputes. Each case is different and will be judged on its own individual facts. It is however, the duty of the Court to consider all the circumstances of the case. First consideration must be given to the welfare of any child of the family.

A number of factors are taken into account by the court when dealing with financial orders for a spouse.

At Harper & Odell we will explain to you the relevance of each of the factors considered and how they apply to your individual circumstances. We can advise you as to the likely settlement achievable through use of the court process, negotiation or mediation.

We have considerable experience in resolving financial disputes, whether through court proceedings or by advising clients who are taking part in mediation or other types of ADR

We always attempt to agree a settlement, rather than proceeding to a contested court hearing where a decision is imposed upon the parties by a Judge. An agreed settlement is often quicker and will usually resolve a dispute more amicably. Furthermore, the legal costs involved in a negotiated settlement rather than a contested hearing will be significantly less. If a satisfactory settlement is not possible though, we would advise issuing an application which ultimately could go before a Judge to be decided.

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