How do courts decide financial settlements on divorce?

We’ve seen what types of financial orders the court can make on divorce, but how does the court decide what orders to make? What are the factors the court has to consider?

The law says that says that the court ‘must have regard to all the circumstances of the case, first consideration being given to the welfare while a minor of any child’, having particular regard to the following:

• The income, earning capacity, property and other financial resources which each of the parties to the marriage has or is likely to have in the foreseeable future;

• The financial needs, obligations and responsibilities which each of the parties to the marriage has or is likely to have in the foreseeable future – this is often a crucial factor, especially in cases where the needs of the parties exceeds the available assets;

• The standard of living enjoyed by the family before the breakdown of the marriage;

• The age of each party to the marriage and the duration of the marriage – so that in a very short marriage with no children the court may consider it appropriate that each party only takes out of the marriage what they put into it;

• Any physical or mental disability of either of the parties to the marriage;

• The contributions which each of the parties has made or is likely in the foreseeable future to make to the welfare of the family, including any contribution by looking after the home or caring for the family;

• The conduct of each of the parties, if that conduct is such that it would in the opinion of the court be inequitable to disregard it – note that the conduct has to be of an extremely serious nature to have any effect upon the financial settlement; and

• The value to each of the parties to the marriage of any benefit which, by reason of the dissolution of the marriage, that party will lose the chance of acquiring – this factor is mainly concerned with pensions.

If you would like advice as to how these factors might apply in your case, Family Law Café can help you find it. To contact us click the Contact link above and fill in the form, or call us on 020 3904 0506.

Image: Money and Calculator, by Images Money, licensed under CC BY 2.0.