Family and Divorce Law
Divorce is one of the most stressful times of anyone’s life as it affects all aspects: your relationships, your children, your home and your finances. You are not alone, over 100,000 people marry every year, however 42% divorce as well.
Most people worry about the short term consequences, how they are going to manage financially, and need reassurance in terms of the law. It is possible to make provisions for this. Timescales become a reason for concern, particularly if things are not straightforward in terms of transparency in the declaration of assets.
We can refer you to Family and Divorce solicitors that can help advise and comfort you through a very difficult time. This can be achieved by clarity and honesty at a time that is most emotionally challenging. What you need is representation by a solicitor that is understanding to your needs, but doesn’t try and lead you into a false sense of security with legal jargon.
The last thing you need is to be unnecessarily overcharged. We can refer you to family solicitors that are transparent in their charging. This can be in the form of fixing a fee before any legal advice, or on a "pay as you go" basis, so that you have a handle on exactly what you are being charged at any time.
Lawyers Online can refer you to divorce solicitors whom ideally want to keep things out of court, if possible, to avoid spiralling costs. This is often in everyone’s best interests, particularly if children are involved. It may be better to settle outside of the courts, however this is not always possible. Often, if hostilities are high, people like to see their "day in court", however costs may well outstrip potential financial gain. This also can often lead to a much longer drawn out affair, where nobody wins.
These are the areas that the solicitors can advise in:
- Divorce Settlements
- Child Support Agency (CSA)
- Cohabitation
- Collaborative Law
- Child Abduction
- Injunctions
- Children and issues of Custody and Contact
- Civil Partnerships
- Divorce and relationship breakdowns
- Unmarried Couples Separating
- Domestic Violence
- International Family Law
- Money and Property
- Pre-Marital Agreements
Legal aid has been abolished for family and divorce apart from cases of domestic abuse. Since April 2014, it is in now a requirement of the courts that couples can prove prior to court proceedings that at least one attempt has been made at mediation with a professional mediator.
We are happy to refer you to solicitors to begin divorce proceedings on your behalf. This begins with the preparation of the Divorce Petition detailing your reasons for the divorce. They then serve this upon your partner, who has 8 days to respond. They will then know whether or not this is to be contested. Obviously where children are involved there is the question of custody. Most importantly, financial provision needs to be made for the family's future.