5 Ways a Court Consent Order Can Save You Money Long Term
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In this article, we’ll be explaining five ways in which a court consent order can be financially beneficial to you in the long term…
When getting divorced, your assets will need to be divided which include things such as property and possessions. During a divorce, most people decide to come to a mutual disagreement on who gets what, however sometimes divorces can be messy and ex-spouses can come back with unreasonable demands.
To help take appropriate measures to protect yourself, we’ll be explaining five ways in which a court consent order can protect your interests and save you money long term.
What is a court consent order?
When a couple divorces, there are usually assets to be divided up. These can include property such as the marital home, cash, vehicles, investments, and other belongings. In many cases, the couple will, with the help of their solicitors, decide between them who will take what away from the marriage. Once this decision is made, the couple will usually apply for a court consent order – this is a legal document which sets out the decisions that the couple has made in terms of the division of property. It is also possible to apply for a clean break court consent order which will prevent either party from making any further claims in the future.
Applying for a court consent order in the UK costs between £50 and £400. It’s important to note that an application will not happen automatically, so you do need to instruct your solicitor to submit this for you.
How Can a Court Consent Order Save you Money?
There are a few ways in which a court consent order can save you money long term, these can include the following:
1. Future windfalls
Many of us dream about winning the lottery but most wouldn’t be thrilled at the idea of sharing their windfall with their ex-spouse. A clean break court consent order at the time of divorce means that, should your finances change drastically for the better at some point in the future, your ex-spouse will not be able to claim any part of this.
2. Future earnings
It may be that, at the time of the divorce, both parties are holding down minimum-wage jobs and are dividing their possessions equally on separation. If, however, one party then goes on to start a successful business, the ex-spouse may be entitled to a share of this.
An example of this is Dale Vince who, at the time of his divorce from Kathleen in 1992, was a penniless new-age traveller. Some years later, Dale built up a wind farm business, sending his personal wealth soaring to a huge £107 million. Although they had been divorced for many years, Kathleen successfully claimed a share of Dale’s business and was awarded a lump sum of £300,000.
3. Protecting pensions
Lots of people pay into a pension throughout their lifetime and rely on this to provide them with a comfortable retirement. However, in some cases, retirement plans will have to be curtailed if an ex-spouse makes a claim on a pension. A court consent order can prevent an ex-spouse from making any such claim, thereby safeguarding your retirement years.
4. Maintenance payments
As well as the division of assets, a court consent order is also used to lock down the terms of maintenance and child support payments. This is extremely important as, having a court consent order in place which includes child support agreements will prevent an ex-spouse from making additional demands as the child gets older such as school or university fees. This also protects against a spouse deciding that they no longer wish to make child support payments should their circumstances change.
5. Clarity
While a couple may hash out and agree on terms between them when instigating a divorce, there’s nothing to stop either party from changing their mind in the future with respect to money or assets. Similarly, there’s nothing to stop either party claiming something after the divorce on the basis that they ‘forgot’ to do so earlier. A court consent order will include any claims which were dismissed at the time of the divorce.
Protecting your future self
From a legal standpoint, you absolutely do not have to have a court consent order when going through the divorce process. It is possible for a couple to simply come to an agreement and trust that the other will honour that agreement. Unfortunately, that trust is not always upheld, and this can lead to future claims on cash, property or assets. For this reason, it makes good sense to put a court consent order in place to provide clarity on the division of assets.
Please be advised that this article is for general informational purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for advice from a trained legal professional. Be sure to consult a family lawyer/solicitor if you’re seeking advice on court consent orders. We are not liable for risks or issues associated with using or acting upon the information on this site.
