Associate Caitlin Philpott sets out the key topics that a solicitor is likely to discuss with you in an initial meeting about divorce and the ensuing financial arrangements.
Consulting a solicitor for the first time about a potential separation is often daunting. It can be an emotional time, especially if it’s your first time seeking legal advice, and about such a personal matter. You might have a long list of questions, but equally you might not know where to start. Both are entirely normal.
A solicitor can tell you what the legislation says, but in order to get advice that is tailored to you, they will need to know about you and your personal circumstances. This is because the law on financial remedies following the breakdown of a marriage is highly discretionary and therefore fact-specific.
Before the first meeting, your solicitor might send you a fact file or questionnaire to complete. This can be a helpful place to start. It may not be clear at the outset how the questions are relevant, but the information requested will facilitate the discussions in the meeting.
In the first instance your solicitor may ask about the circumstances of your separation (if indeed this has already happened), the current state of your relationship with your spouse, and what has prompted you to take legal advice at this stage. They may also ask how you are feeling about everything and what your main concerns and objectives are. This isn’t to upset you or to force you to recount every detail of your relationship; it’s to get an idea of the dynamics at play within the relationship. There are a number of different routes that can be used to reach a financial settlement – including direct discussions, mediation, solicitor negotiation and court proceedings – but not all of them may be suited to your relationship.
You may also be asked whether you feel your relationship has come to an end. This isn’t because your solicitor is trying to make you second-guess yourself. People take advice at different stages of a relationship breakdown. Some people seek advice only once a permanent separation has occurred and some people see a solicitor before even broaching the subject of separation with their spouse. Divorce is an exceptionally personal process. Your solicitor will be guided by you and so they will want to know what you’re thinking.
Key personal details your solicitor will discuss
Assets and liabilities
What assets and liabilities do you currently have and what is their approximate value? You should include properties, bank accounts, investments, companies, mortgages, loans and credit cards, either in your name or in your spouse’s. Managing the family’s finances may have been your spouse’s domain and you may therefore not have this to hand. There’s no need to worry or be embarrassed about this. Tell your solicitor anything you do know and they will explain the financial disclosure process used to ascertain any missing information.
Income and employment
Again, the solicitor will want to know details of your employment and income. It may also be helpful to know what you were each doing when you started the relationship as this may give an indication of potential future earning capacity.
Cohabitation
Your solicitor will want to know whether you lived together before marriage as this is usually taken in to account when assessing the length of the marriage.
Standard of living
What was your standard of living during the relationship? At this stage your solicitor will likely only need a flavour of this but if could be helpful to know, for example, what the family home is like.
International connections
If you or you or your spouse have international connections as a result of nationality, residence, assets located abroad (e.g., a holiday home) or otherwise.
Children
If there are any children, the solicitor would need to ascertain their ages, where they go to school and the current arrangements (if any) for their time. It may be that you have already agreed arrangements with your spouse or it’s something that you’re planning on dealing with between the two of you without the involvement of lawyers. That’s entirely up to you, but knowledge of the arrangements will assist your solicitor in advising you on the finances e.g., any entitlement to child maintenance.
Physical and mental needs
Any particular needs that you, your spouse or your children have, for example, as a result of physical or mental disability.
Potential non-matrimonial property
Your solicitor may ask what assets, if any, you each brought into the marriage to assess whether there may be any potential disputes over ringfencing assets from the matrimonial pot. Similarly, if either of you received any significant inheritance during the marriage it would be helpful to let your solicitor know what this was and how it was dealt with.
Nuptial agreements
Did you and your spouse sign an agreement, either before your marriage or afterwards, setting out how any or all of your assets would be dealt with? This could substantially affect the financial settlement.
New partners
This may be a difficult subject, but it helps to feed into the solicitor’s understanding of, among other things, the relationship dynamics if either you or your spouse have a new partner.
We also understand that you will have your own questions and it’s often a good idea to make a list of these to ensure that nothing is overlooked. You should also expect for your solicitor to have questions of their own. Knowing what to expect can allow you to prepare in advance and means you’ll not be caught off guard by some of the questions that may arise, which can be very personal in nature. If your solicitor has an understanding of the points mentioned above they will be in a better position to give you more specific advice, which in turn will better empower you to make informed decisions about how you want to proceed.
About Caitlin
Caitlin Philpott is in the family and children team, advising on a wide range of family law matters, including divorce and separation, financial settlements and child arrangements. She also advises on cohabitation and is experienced in preparing declarations of trust.
Get in touch
If you would like to speak with a member of the team you can contact our family and children solicitors by telephone on +44 (0)20 3826 7520 or complete our enquiry form.
