Can it really only cost each person around £1000 to get a divorce and financial order from the court when many separating couples are spending many many £1000’s and months if not years, doing just this ?
I have had 3 financial mediations this week all of which concluded within one 2 hour joint meeting, costing the separated couple less than £750 each in total in mediation fees to reach a fair financial agreement and have an appropriate consent order drafted.
In the current economic climate we (family professionals) need to be doing everything we can to work together to support our separating clients to ‘separate together’, empowering and enabling them to work with us and each other to reach fair outcomes, where they are motivated to do so and it is safe to do so.
The three mediations I refer to were possible for the following reasons:
Good intent and motivated
From the outset, each of the couples demonstrated a good intention, sufficient trust in each other and a clear motivation to reach their own fair financial outcomes. This was established in thorough and robust pre-mediation individual sessions of about 1 hour each.
Standard set of facts
Each set of circumstances represented what I consider a ‘standard set of facts’ involving 1 or 2 properties, a small clutch of small private (defined contributions) pensions, 1 or 2 children, 2 incomes (one larger than the other) and a clutch of other small assets and some debts. Not complicated.
Business like communication
The communication between them was ‘business like’. Respectful, dignified but not without their differences.
Clear priorities
Each couple had a clear idea of their priorities for the outcome they were seeking to achieve and wanted some guidance about ‘fairness’ in law.
DIY Homework
Each couple were prepared to do the ‘home work’ I asked them to do, including completing Form Es (mediation version ensuring a full and frank financial disclosure), income/expenditure schedules and read the relevant parts of my Divorce Manual (see below) relating to their specific situation and what they were wanting to achieve, including some relevant legal guides setting out the law and legal principles applying to their situation.
Collaboration
After the joint session, they collaborated in completing a form D81 (financial summary form in support of a Consent Order) for themselves which needs to go to the court with the financial consent order.
Simple Consent order
They were able to understand and approve a simple draft Consent order (with explanatory notes) provided to them on a Privileged and Confidential basis.
Legal advice
They were of course recommended to take legal advice relating to the draft consent order before signing and sending it to the court.
Divorce
Oh yes, all three couples had also applied for their own No-fault divorce and were waiting for the Conditional divorce orders so that they could ask the Judge to make their agreement and draft order binding.
Cost
I believe that each of these couples will have spent a total of
£7-750 each on mediation (neutral solicitor/mediator)
£750 total on court fees
£? Solicitor’s advice and assistance including some conveyancing fees.
Therefore, putting aside the solicitors fees, these separating couples will have spent about £1000 each to get divorced and obtain a binding financial order.
Admittedly, no other experts were needed such as pension experts, accountants etc but it does show us that where the situation is factually straightforward, the couples are motivated and work with the professional helping them, they can achieve a very efficient and cost effective ‘separation together’.
A divorce need not cost a separating couple £1000’s ! So, let’s all try to ensure that separating couples get to keep most of their money in their own pockets.