Since the divorce law reforms in April 2022, there is a minimum 26-week period from application to Final Order, even in the most straightforward cases. This breaks down as: 20 weeks from application to being able to apply for Conditional Order, then minimum 6 weeks from Conditional Order to Final Order. So the absolute fastest divorce is about 6-7 months.

In practice, most uncontested divorces take 6-9 months because of administrative processing times at the court. The divorce itself moves through these stages fairly predictably if uncontested. However, this doesn't include financial settlement negotiations, which often continue in parallel and can take longer.

Contested divorces (where one party objects to the divorce itself) can take 12-18 months, though these are now rare since the reforms removed the requirement to prove fault. The more common delay is in financial proceedings - if you can't agree financial settlement and end up in court proceedings, expect 12-24 months from start to final hearing. Complex financial cases with business valuations, overseas assets, or non-disclosure issues can take even longer.

Children arrangement proceedings vary widely - some are resolved in 3-4 months through early negotiation or mediation, while contested cases involving CAFCASS reports and multiple hearings can take 12+ months.

The key factor in timescale is usually not the divorce itself, but the financial and children matters that accompany it. Our approach focuses on efficient resolution through strong negotiation to avoid unnecessary delays.

For the divorce itself: No, you don't attend court. Divorce applications are now processed entirely online and on paper. The court will issue the Conditional Order and Final Order without anyone attending a hearing. Even if the divorce is contested (rare), there's no oral hearing - the court decides based on written submissions.

For financial settlements: Most cases don't go to final hearing. Around 90% of financial cases settle through negotiation, either through solicitor correspondence, round-table meetings, or at the Financial Dispute Resolution (FDR) hearing. The FDR is designed to encourage settlement - the judge gives a non-binding indication of likely outcome, which usually prompts agreement. If you do settle by negotiation, the financial consent order is submitted to the court for approval on paper, and you don't attend.

However, if you can't reach agreement on finances, a final hearing is necessary. You would attend with your solicitor and possibly a barrister. The hearing typically lasts 1-2 days (complex cases can be longer). Both parties give evidence, and the judge makes a binding decision about how assets should be divided.

For children arrangements: The court strongly encourages agreement through mediation or solicitor negotiation. If you reach agreement, a consent order can be submitted without attendance. If you can't agree, there will be several court hearings - typically a First Hearing Dispute Resolution Appointment (FHDRA), potentially a Dispute Resolution Appointment (DRA), and if still no agreement, a final hearing. CAFCASS (Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service) will usually prepare a report. You would attend these hearings.

Our goal is always to achieve settlement without final hearing where possible - it's faster, cheaper, less stressful, and gives you more control over the outcome. But when necessary, we're fully prepared to represent you at trial.

A financial consent order is a legally binding document approved by the court that sets out how you and your spouse will divide your money, property, pensions, and other assets. It's called a "consent" order because both parties agree to the terms (as opposed to the court imposing terms after a contested hearing).

Critically, a financial consent order provides a clean break and prevents either party from making further financial claims against the other in future. Without a consent order, even if you've divorced, either party can bring a financial claim at any point in the future - even decades later - to seek a share of assets, income, pensions, inheritances, lottery winnings, etc.

Even if you think you have "nothing to divide" or you've agreed things informally, you absolutely should have a consent order. Common scenarios where people think they don't need one but actually do: "We're both keeping what's in our own names" (this could be challenged later), "Neither of us wants anything from the other" (without an order, either could change their mind), "We already split everything when we separated" (informal arrangements aren't legally binding).

The consent order should cover: division of equity in any property, lump sum payments, pension sharing orders, spousal maintenance (or confirmation there will be none), dismissal of future claims, and arrangements for any joint debts. It must be approved by a judge - they check it's fair before making it legally binding.

Our fixed fee for drafting and submitting a consent order in agreed terms is £599 + VAT plus £50 court fee. This is essential protection and a small price to pay for complete financial closure. Don't make the common mistake of getting divorced without sorting finances properly - it creates huge problems down the line.

There's no fixed formula for dividing assets in England and Wales - each case depends on circumstances. However, the court follows established principles. The starting point is equality (50/50) for marriages of reasonable length where both parties contributed (whether through earning or homemaking). The court then considers whether departure from equality is justified based on needs, contributions, or other factors.

Key factors the court considers: (1) Needs - housing and income needs of each party and any children. Children's welfare is paramount. (2) Income and earning capacity - present and foreseeable future earnings. (3) Standard of living during marriage. (4) Age and length of marriage - shorter marriages may justify unequal division, especially if one party brought significant pre-acquired assets. (5) Contributions - financial and non-financial (homemaking and childcare count equally). (6) Conduct - only relevant in exceptional cases (e.g., dissipation of assets). (7) Any physical or mental disability.

For "needs-based" cases (assets just enough to meet both parties' needs), the court focuses on ensuring adequate housing for the primary carer of children and fair allocation of available resources. For "sharing cases" (surplus assets beyond needs), equality is usually the outcome unless there are good reasons to depart from it (e.g., short marriage, significant pre-acquired wealth, extraordinary contributions).

Pensions are treated as matrimonial assets and divided (usually through pension sharing orders). The family home is often the biggest asset and generates the most negotiation - options include: sale and division of equity, one party buying out the other, transfer to one party with offsetting assets going to the other, or Mesher orders (deferred sale until children finish school).

Spousal maintenance may be awarded if one party can't meet their income needs from their own resources. The court prefers "clean break" (no ongoing maintenance) where feasible, but this isn't always possible (e.g., long marriage, significant income disparity, caring responsibilities preventing full-time work). Maintenance can be for a fixed term or joint lives, and can be varied if circumstances change.

The family home is usually the most valuable and emotionally significant asset. What happens to it depends on several factors: equity available, housing needs of each party, children's needs, mortgage capacity, and other assets available to meet housing needs.

Common outcomes include: (1) Sale and division of equity - cleanest solution but only works if both parties can afford alternative housing with their share. (2) Transfer to one party with offsetting - one party keeps the home, the other gets larger share of other assets (pensions, savings, lump sum from remortgage). This requires the retaining party to raise finance to buy out the other's share. (3) Transfer to primary carer - where children are involved, the parent with primary care often keeps the home to provide stability. The other party may receive deferred charge or reduced equity now with balancing payment later. (4) Mesher order - property held in joint names with sale deferred until a trigger event (e.g., youngest child turns 18 or finishes education). The departing parent retains interest but can't force sale until trigger.

For jointly-owned properties, both names remain on the title (and usually mortgage) until transfer or sale is completed. This can take several months if remortgaging is involved, as mortgage lenders assess affordability. You may need life insurance to protect the mortgage lender's interest.

If one party refuses to cooperate with sale or transfer, court can order it and appoint a receiver to sign documents on their behalf. If the property is in one name only but the other has contributed to mortgage or home improvements, they may still have a beneficial interest (trust claim) that needs to be resolved.

Tax implications matter: transfers between spouses before Final Order are typically exempt from capital gains tax and stamp duty, but transfers after divorce may trigger these taxes. We work with tax advisers where significant sums are involved to structure property settlements tax-efficiently. Timing of transfers can make a substantial difference to how much each party actually receives.

Spousal maintenance (ongoing income payments from one spouse to the other) may be awarded if there's an income disparity and one party can't meet their reasonable needs from their own income. The court's starting point is that both parties should become financially independent, but this isn't always realistic, especially after long marriages or where caring responsibilities limit earning capacity.

Factors affecting maintenance: Length of marriage (longer marriages more likely to result in maintenance), standard of living during marriage, age and health (older spouse may struggle to re-enter workforce), caring responsibilities (looking after children or disabled relatives), earning capacity of both parties, and available income after both parties' needs are met.

Types of maintenance: (1) Nominal maintenance (£1/year) - a placeholder allowing future application if circumstances change. (2) Term maintenance - fixed period (e.g., 5 years) to allow recipient to retrain/increase earnings. May or may not be extendable. (3) Joint lives maintenance - continues until remarriage, death, or further court order. Usually reserved for long marriages where recipient unlikely to achieve financial independence. (4) Transitional maintenance - short-term support to bridge period between separation and financial independence.

The amount is calculated based on the recipient's reasonable income needs (based on marital standard of living) minus their own income, with consideration to what the payer can afford after meeting their own needs. There's no fixed percentage or formula. Maintenance is payable from net (after-tax) income.

Clean break is preferred: Courts prefer clean break settlements (no ongoing maintenance) where possible, as it achieves financial independence and finality. This might be achieved by capitalizing maintenance (one-off lump sum instead of monthly payments). However, clean break isn't appropriate where recipient has genuine long-term income needs that can't be met otherwise (common in long marriages where one party gave up career to raise children).

Maintenance can be varied later if circumstances change significantly (e.g., job loss, illness, remarriage, cohabitation). Applications to vary must show material change in circumstances.

Children arrangements (where they live and how much time they spend with each parent) are decided based on the child's best interests - this is the court's paramount consideration. The law presumes that children benefit from meaningful relationships with both parents, unless there are safeguarding concerns.

Types of orders: (1) Child Arrangements Order specifying who the child lives with and spends time with (replaced old "residence" and "contact" orders). (2) Specific Issue Order - resolves specific dispute (e.g., which school, medical treatment, taking abroad). (3) Prohibited Steps Order - prevents one parent doing something (e.g., removing from UK, changing school). (4) Parental Responsibility Order - gives unmarried fathers equal legal parental responsibility.

Living arrangements: Children can live primarily with one parent (with time spent with the other), or arrangements can be shared more equally (though exactly 50/50 splits are less common than people assume). "Lives with both" orders are possible but require cooperation and proximity. The court considers: child's age and wishes (older children's views given more weight), established routine and stability, each parent's ability to meet needs, siblings staying together, proximity to school and friends, work patterns of parents, and quality of relationship with each parent.

Time spent with (contact): For the non-resident parent, typical patterns might be every other weekend plus midweek evening, or alternating weeks, or whatever suits the child and parents' circumstances. There's no "standard" arrangement - it depends on ages of children, distance between homes, work patterns, and existing routines. Contact can be supervised if there are safeguarding concerns, progressing to unsupervised as trust builds.

The court encourages parents to reach agreement through mediation, direct negotiation, or with solicitor assistance. If agreement isn't possible, CAFCASS (Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service) will prepare a report after meeting parents and children, visiting homes, and sometimes speaking to schools/doctors. The CAFCASS report is very influential in the court's decision.

Parental alienation (one parent undermining child's relationship with other) is taken seriously and can result in child's living arrangements being changed. Similarly, failure to comply with court orders can lead to enforcement proceedings and potential penalties including fines or change of residence.