Financial Matter - Consent Order

Background

It is in both parties’ interests for the divorce and subsequent financial matters that arise from the divorce to be dealt with in an amicable, cost-effective manner where possible.

In one matter we had been instructed by a Wife (Sophia*) who had separated from her husband (Leo*) in June 2021. Despite having a modest lifestyle prior to the separation, Sophia had been left with paying the rent solely on the property whilst Leo moved in with his new partner. However, in July 2021, Sophia won the lottery as a result of which she received a five-figure annuity per month for the next 30 years.

Proceedings and Solutions

We had been instructed to prepare a legally binding agreement, known as a Consent Order, reflective of the agreement that had been reached between the parties. During the negotiation stage, we argued that the lottery winnings were not matrimonial as they had been deposited following the separation. After the negotiation process was completed, we began drafting the relevant agreement and D81 (limited disclosure form).

Our client took on board our recommendations with regards to the financial settlement as neither party wanted this to be a drawn out, expensive and aggravated process. Following both parties providing their agreement to both forms, the documents were issued with the Court who returned with various questions in relation to the agreement, the most notable of which was the unequal division of capital that Sophia had accumulated.

We then responded to the Court notifying them that the capital was obtained post-separation and therefore should be deemed as non-matrimonial funds for the purposes of the agreement.

The Results

Soon after our detailed response was considered by the Judge, the sealed Consent Order was circulated and Sophia was elated with the outcome. We assisted the client in finalising the matter in a matter of months whereas she had feared the worst believing that the matter would take over a year to complete.

* Disclaimer: The names used in the following case study have been changed to protect the confidentiality and anonymity of individuals involved in the case.