Separated since 2007, absolute in 2009. Couldn't find a way forward on financial settlement as 2 teenage kids and a small first home which I have owned since 1990, but she was put on the mortgage and deeds for in 1998. I moved out in 2007 and I've been renting since. I'm now being evicted by my landlord, and as both kids are over 21 and independent, it's time to get things sorted. She doesn't work and since the divorce I've paid the mortgage on the house, insurance, utilities and £350 on top for
child maintenance or whatever else.
She put forward what she wanted for a
Clean Break settlement, and I did a lot of spadework around the options the banks would agree to, but the only two options were sale of the
FMH or I buy her out. As there are two family pets buried in the garden, she felt happier if I bought her out as I understand the sentimentality of the graves. I also need to be on the commute route for my workplace, and I'm not giving up my job to move somewhere with a cheaper property market. She, however, is 54 and for 6 months has worked cash in hand at a market for pin money. Part of the settlement is half my pension which she could start drawing down or extract a lump sum from in another 12 months time. She also said she wants to move in with her 87 year old mother for a bit to look after her, buy into her mum's house covering her brother's share of any future inheritance, and / or get a houseboat and run a small boater service business from that, laundry or soft furnishings or something.
The process of the spadework and getting the order drafted took 4 months. She signed and the courts took 3 months before they looked at it and found a defect in a form. The application had to be resubmitted and this was processed after another 2 months to be sealed. 4weeks post sealing, she's decided she doesn't want to go ahead with the undertakings she agreed to, and I'm now 6 weeks from eviction. I have to go back to court to have the order enforced, which will push me beyond eviction and mortgage offer expiry. Meanwhile she could be applying for the FormE type financial settlement, and I don't know if she can technically do that with a sealed consent order in place or if she'll have to appeal the order or apply for setting aside. I also don't know if I should keep up the informal payment as to do otherwise could be duress, but to do so indicates that I've accepted an obligation to pay.
In short, it's taken 10 months from starting negotiations to getting the order, but the matter is not over and done with yet. Had she continued down the
form E route when she started it in 2008 or again in 2013, both of which times she abandoned the claims because she didn't want to reveal her financial affairs or answer any of my solicitors questions about her finances, then it would have taken easily 12-18 months with interim payments and residence and disposal orders ongoing. The case could take longer than that, even with solicitors giving 30 days to respond to each set of queries until they get a set of
financial disclosure papers that they can both agree on.
Even with a mutually agreed consent order, nothing is clear cut. I hope you have a record of the discussions around the consent order settlement. Because you have that already drawn up, it could be said to be an indication of the needs of both parties and should form the basis of your request for settlement if you pursue the more expensive full case. The good news is that if you are able to show that the consensual outcome is the same as the outcome by way of the full disclosure route, then you should be able to enter a claim for excess costs against the other party.
