The ending of a relationship can be fraught with hurt, anger, guilt and sadness and it is perfectly normal to feel this way at different stages. How you manage your separation is critical to how easily you move forward. Your aim – and our aim for you – is that by the conclusion of the separation process you should feel confident, positive and certain.
If you have children, see our Children page for helpful information about managing separation in a child-focused way.
MARRIAGE / CIVIL PARTNERSHIPS
Divorce / dissolution
If you have been married or in a civil partnership for more than one year,our divorce lawyers can help identify the least antagonistic way of achieving divorce or dissolution. Reaching a solid and agreed ground for divorce or dissolution can help you avoid a contentious process and minimise the chances of the process becoming defended. Our divorce/dissolution service will also provide important advice in relation to resolving financial claims.
If you are married and are contemplating separation without wanting to divorce (for example on religious, moral, emotional or financial grounds), we can help you formalise these wishes in a judicial separation or separation agreement.
for unmarried couples
Advice
Your legal entitlement to assets will be different to those in marriages or civil partnerships if you are unmarried and separating. In these circumstances, we can assist you by drafting a separation agreement.
Prettys’ dedicated family solicitors build a team around you that provides bespoke emotional, financial and legal support that is tailored to the individual circumstances of you and your family. Our years of experience in this area has proven dialogue is key. At every stage, we encourage amicable discussion between separating partners, avoiding court battles and reaching an agreement that is best for both of you, and any children involved.
The Prettys family team knows that separation is a journey that can sometimes feel like a roller-coaster and the scars can linger for years if not handled sensitively. Our client-focused approach is centred around helping you get back to normal life, ensuring you benefit from expert legal advice at a time when you need it most.
Prettys’ family law team offers many years of practical experience in dealing with family-related issues, helping you navigate the high and low points, agreements and disagreements. The team is unique in that, aside from being legal experts, each of our solicitors is also trained as, or training to be, a mediator, helping to foster continuing dialogue wherever possible.
Our innovative Talking Works service encourages round table discussions between you and your partner with our help. This enables creative and bespoke solutions within which you each achieve what you want and allows you to conclude separation with grace, dignity and courtesy. If you have children together, this aim is all the more important. Where input is needed from other experts, we will draw that professional from our trusted Talking Works Professionals Hub and build a support team around you.
If you would like to speak to our dedicated team of family lawyers, you can contact us on 01473 232121, complete an online contact form or send us an email via familylaw@prettys.co.uk and we’d be happy to help.
Please note we do not offer legal aid but are always happy to talk over your case and fees.
FAQs
This is a process intended to enable you to divorce without finding reasons to blame one another, unlike adultery and unreasonable behaviour. ‘No fault’ divorce is now written into UK Law.
We aim to find the least antagonistic way of divorcing or dissolving a civil partnership. Best practice dictates that as a courtesy your partner should know what you are intending. It can be helpful to agree in advance the details of any legal document and agree whether the costs are to be shared between you. It is quicker and cheaper if your former partner co-operates with the process. If you are in an abusive relationship, we can talk to you in confidence about how to start proceedings whilst protecting your safety.
If you are contemplating formally ending your relationship, it is important that you take early advice in each legal jurisdiction that may be available to you. Different legal jurisdictions have different requirements for divorce or dissolution, and some may be more financially favourable than others. Where the proceedings are filed first is usually the jurisdiction that decides legal matters. This can sometimes lead to each person trying to file proceedings first in a country favourable to them. Talk to us for more information.
Not always, but it would be helpful for you to talk through the basis of the petition to ensure it is correct and you understand what is required. It can be difficult to undo errors later on. It is really important that you talk to a divorce solicitor about getting a financial Order if you are divorcing or dissolving a civil partnership.
Civil partnerships and marriage provide for financial claims for each partner against the other for income, capital, property and pension. You should be aware of the importance of a financial Order to resolve these claims and to define if the claims continue beyond the relationship. Many people mistakenly think that divorce or dissolution automatically ends financial claims. This is incorrect and a separate financial Order is needed – see our Finances page.
For married couples separating but not wishing to pursue divorce proceedings (normally for religious or personal reasons), judicial separation may be appropriate. Judicial separation is a formal, legal method of separating and dividing finances without divorcing. Judicial separation does not end your marriage, but it does take away the need to live together and enables you to resolve some financial claims between you as if you were divorced.
These are contractual documents drawn up by unmarried couples who are separating and want to record how assets and debts are being shared; they do not need to be filed at court. Separation agreements can also be used where a marriage or civil partnership is not yet a year old or, to record arrangements where there will be a period of separation prior to divorce or dissolution. This is most common where there are separations of two or five year periods. Our Talking Works service encourages round table discussions to reach a solution that suits you both.
Yes, this is sensible. Where a couple intend the agreement to be legally binding, there are certain criteria that must be met. An informal agreement written down by partners can be evidence of what was intended, but does not necessarily legally bind each of you, leaving claims open in the future.
