ANCILLARY RELIEF

My husband has filed for divorce.
We cannot agree on a financial settlement.
We are not using solicitors.
I think my next stage is to apply for Ancillary Relief.
I am thinking of sending off the form, then getting a solicitor involved once STBX starts arguing!
Has anyone any advice for me please?

Yes, you should apply for Ancillary Relief. That is pretty definite.

I can only say that there are some divorces where everything gets sorted out reasonably amicably. There are others where one of both parties fight tooth and claw. The latter method is not good for your sanity or your bank balance.

If you think you are capable of talking sensibly,then it could make sense to go to mediation. But here you have a problem. Do you know what you might be entitled to ? How is a lay person to know what is reasonable ?

So I think what you would be wise to do is to get together the basic details of your finances, ie your income, assets, pension entitlement, housing, together with what you know about your husband's, and get an introductory appointment with a family solicitor to give you an idea of what you might come away with. Even if you go to mediation, which is what I recommend, you need to know the general parameters of what is achievable and what is not. You don't want to sell yourself short, but neither do you want to waste time by asking for too much.

LMM

Hello,
thanks for your reply. I do have an idea of what I'd like to ask for, and its significantly less than the Divorce Calculator suggests. briefly, i am asking for 65% of property, no SM and no pension.
My STBX earns 62k, i earn 17k, self employed. 15 years of marriage, 2 children under 10.
Can i simply send in the application form for Ancillary Relief myself? I've already done form E, although it will need updating. STBX is very unwilling to co operate re sharing pension info.
I have no savings, therefore want to do as much as i can myself, but with solicitor support as needed. So i'm not sure whether to buy the 'solicitor managed contested finances' from this site, stage 2.
mediation is not an option. STBX came up with a figure that was ok 6 months ago, but has done nothing towards giving me that amount. He has said he's in no hurry.

Why 65% house, Why no pension split or sm?

If you call the number at the top of the page you can get some free advice regarding the next move.

I will say this though, without full disclosure no negotiation can happen all the cards need to be on the table first.

You can make a claim for a financial order yourself (it was called ancillary relief) via form A and a court fee.

It would be wise to take some legal advice first though.

As Dukey says, it is impossible to work out what a fair split is until all information is to hand, particularly the pension information as he pension value and type could have quite an effect on the settlement.

With the new procedure, parties have to be referred to mediation before the court will allocate a hearing date. As far I I understand, a mediator will assess whether the parties are suitable for mediation or not. If not, the matter an be listed for hearing.

Charles

65% of property assets would enable me to keep the FMH with no mortgage. I can't get a mortgage, as i have no contract of work, being a supply teacher. No SM or pension as a compromise because my STBX is not budging on wanting a 50:50 split of house assets. He's not even considering SM or pension anyway. thinks that he's contributed everything and me nothing, even though i worked part time the whole marriage.