Whether your marriage lasted five years or fifty, splitting up is never easy and the emotional impact of divorce is challenging enough without considering legal proceedings. However, when the time comes to decide how assets will be divided, what will happen to the property you own and most importantly, who will be primarily responsible for raising your children, it is easy for disputes to escalate.

Any divorce has a huge emotional impact on the individuals involved, but for high net worth individuals it can also raise complex legal, financial and commercial issues.

A ‘Civil Partnership’ provides couples with similar rights to married couples. Changing the status of your relationship can have important legal consequences, allowing your partner to have a claim over your income, property capital, pension or your estate on death.

Domestic violence and abuse is not a subject that many are eager to discuss. Unfortunately, this includes the majority of victims, who are reluctant to speak out due to fear of making the situation worse. As a result, many violent incidents go unreported, allowing the abuse to continue and possibly increase in severity.

More and more couples are now seeking a formal agreement prior to marriage.  Is a prenuptial agreement on your wedding checklist?

A cohabitation agreement is a legal agreement for a couple who have chosen to live together but are not married or in a civil partnership and protects their assets should the relationship break down at a later stage.

Collaborative law is a process which offers separating couples an alternative to litigation. Instead of relying on the Court to determine what is fair, collaborative law offers the couple themselves the opportunity to agree what is right for their children and financially for themselves in collaboration with each other and their own solicitors in a series of four-way meetings.

On the breakdown of a relationship, arrangements for any children will need to be agreed.  If parents are unable to agree these arrangements between themselves, an application will need to be made to court for a Child Arrangements Order.

The law in relation to married and unmarried couples is quite different.  For married couples matrimonial settlements are governed by the law as set out in the Matrimonial Causes Act.  For unmarried couples there is no comprehensive law governing their financial settlement.  Please see the relevant pages below.

During a marriage, one partner's pension can outgrow the other. During the marriage this isn't a problem, but if the marriage ends, you are no longer entitled to a lump sum or income on your partners death or retirement, and this can lead to inequality in the standard of living you can expect in your old age.

If you are the joint owner of a property with one or more other person it is probable (unless you have specified otherwise) that you will own as a “joint tenant”. In this context the word “tenant” actually relates to ownership and is nothing to do with leases.

If you own a property with a partner and are not married, resolving the property ownership can become very complex if your relationship breaks down and you do not have a formal agreement (cohabitation agreement), in place.

This guidance has been put together to give prospective clients an idea about what to expect during the initial consultation appointment and the type of information we will ask for. It has been modelled on an appointment for a client who is considering or going through a divorce, but the general principles apply to all appointments.