Divorce

If a marriage breaks down, then at some point divorce proceedings usually follow on. For some, there’s no rush. For others, they want to get started as soon as they can.

There are some issues which are important to consider at the outset:

Firstly, have the marriage’s finances been sorted out? Inksters can assist you in negotiating the division of any matrimonial property and arranging for a monthly payment to be made if this is appropriate. You can read more about this process here.

Secondly, are there any issues with your children that need to be resolved? If there is a dispute about contact with the children or about where they should be living, it is preferable where appropriate to try to resolve this through mediation or negotiation first before divorce proceedings commence. See the relevant section of our website for details – Issues about children.

Once these issues have been resolved, the application for a divorce can be much more straightforward from a legal point of view. In fact, if there are no financial issues and there are no children of your marriage under 16, then a ‘simplified divorce’ procedure might be appropriate for you. This procedure has been referred to in the press as a ‘quickie divorce’ procedure and, if you meet the criteria, it might allow you to obtain a divorce yourself, with no need to instruct a solicitor.

However, if there are issues which need to be resolved or you have children under 16, you will need a solicitor to assist you in raising a standard divorce action. You will not normally have to appear in court and we can raise the action for you and deal with all of the paperwork, including the writ, service of the action, preparing the documents and applying for a final order to be granted. Occasionally, when agreement cannot be reached, there is no alternative but to raise a court action for divorce and also issues regarding finances or children. If so, we can provide robust representation on your behalf and protect your interests.

Inksters’ downloadable Information Sheet about divorce (available from our resources page) contains detailed information about the types of procedure which are available and should help you to work out which one is appropriate for you and what to expect from the process once you get started.

When you’re ready to go ahead, please contact our family law team on 03454 500 123.