Posted March 14th, 2013
Cuts to the legal aid budget that come in next month are going to leave many vulnerable families deprived of vital services that only professionals can supply.
I can’t really understand where the government is coming from on this one. Often when cuts are imposed there will be some alternative offered. Yet in this instance the legislation comes in and will leave many people in difficult situations with nowhere to turn; and let’s not forget that there will obviously be a lot of children caught in the midst of all this. So much for the welfare of the child is paramount.
One reputable firm of solicitors – Stephensons, the largest family law team in the North West – are making provisions to help those that are in a vulnerable position. The help on offer to those families whether they may be divorcing, parents in adoption cases or parents trying to resolve contact disputes will include a fixed fee service and a flexible ‘pay as you go’ service. Both services will ensure that, at the very least those facing having to pay for their legal repressentation will know where they stand from a cost perspective.
I also offer a free 30 minute consultation and have a lot of experience in helping people work through their finances on divorce whether that is helping you get a fair settlement or implementing a pension sharing order. If you feel that you may be affected by the changes in legal aid then why not get in touch for a free 30 minute, no obligation consultation.
Tags: Advice, Divorce, Financial Settlement, pension share, Pension Sharing, Pension Sharing Orders, Pensions & divorce, Resolution Accredited Independent Financial Adviser | Posted in Divorce, Financial Advice, Pension Sharing, Pension Sharing Order, Pensions & divorce, Resolution Accredited IFAs |
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Posted March 4th, 2013
Not a good idea. Of course it may seem unfair to have to declare assets that were acquired before you got married; or assets that were solely paid for by you during the marriage, but the fact is if you aren’t up front about your finances during divorce then you are risking a spell in prison.
According to a survey by Co-operative Legal Services, 25% of those who go through divorce will hide aspects of their finances from their soon to be ex-partner. And here’s the really surprising thing about this survey – the survey was conducted online and involved around 800 divorcees and it found that women are more likely to conceal money and possessions during a divorce.
From a little research on the good ol’ worldly wide web, it looks like most divorces are initiated by women. Stats abound from anything between 55% and 91%. So what are we to glean from this? It does make for depressing reading. You could take the view that women view marriage purely as a move to make financial gain. Whereas I’ve no doubt that it’s true for some, it surely can’t be true for anything more than a minority. That would be highly cynical.
I think it points more to the fact that many people marry the wrong person and do it too quickly; and as it is often the mother whom the children will live with, you may imagine that she may feel justified in hiding financial assets from an estranged spouse. After all, she’s only doing it for the kids. Morally justifiable it may be, but it is illegal and you are putting yourself in contempt of court if you do this. The whole point of settlements is to make sure that both sides have the chance to put their lives back on track. The best way to ensure that there is a fair outcome is to be completely open and honest. If you’re made an offer you aren’t happy with then you don’t have to accept it. On the other hand if you’re made an offer that you don’t know if you should accept or you want help with negotiating then get in touch.
I am a Resolution Accredited IFA and as such I am in a position to help you get a fair settlement without risking prison!
Tags: Advice, Divorce, Financial Settlement, IFA, Resolution, Resolution Accredited, Resolution Accredited Independent Financial Adviser | Posted in Divorce, Financial Advice, Financial Planning, Pension Sharing Order, Pensions & divorce, Resolution Accreditation, Resolution Accredited IFAs |
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Posted March 1st, 2013
You can’t get divorced unless you get married. Aside from stating the obvious, I’m underlining the point that these days marriage seems little more than a precursor to divorce. It was only within the last week that I heard an acquaintance remark about how much more fun his divorce is compared to his marriage.
Granted, there is maybe a little relief when it all becomes absolute, but this rising trend that divorce is the main course after the entre of marriage is eroding at society. That sounds sweeping, but marriage just doesn’t seem to mean what it used to.
For better or worse is a redundant term as couples seem to run to divorce solicitors at the merest hint that they have actually married another human being just as flawed as they are. For better or slightly worse than better may be more apt.
When nothing but divorce will do though and there is no salvaging the wreckage of supposed wedded harmony, the last thing you need on top of the stress are spiralling costs and poor quality representation:
BBC News – Rising costs add to divorce woe, says Legal Ombudsman
Marriage should be more – much more than an exercise in saving for divorce. Divorce costs are starting to rival what you’ll spend on a wedding day; and it looks like there are some unscrupulous solicitors looking to capitalise on clients engaged in an acrimonious divorce. That’s abuse, whichever way you cut it up. That is praying on the vulnerable and taking advantage of their state of mind.
A common and highly justifiable complaint by clients and consumers in the financial services industry is that charges are not transparent and clear. The Retail Distribution Review was set up to combat that issue (although it’s clear that there are many providers and platforms that are quite happy to work around that and leave clients still scratching their head when it comes to exactly what they are paying!) and I would say it’s time that something similar was brought in to weed out the more unscrupulous solicitors that just want your money.
If you’re not happy with your legal representation and feel they are not acting in your best interests, then please get in touch by phone on 01204 663904 or by email – phil@white-well.co.uk. I can recommend excellent law firms that will act with your best interests at heart.
Image Credit: Flickr.com/stan
Whitewell Financial Planning Ltd is not responsible for the content of external websites
Tags: Advice, Divorce, Pension Sharing, pension sharing order, Resolution Accredited Independent Financial Adviser, Settlement | Posted in Divorce, Financial Advice, Pension Credit, Pension Sharing, Pension Sharing Order |
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Posted November 20th, 2012
…..and that figure is unnervingly low. There are nearly twice as many women over 50 without a pension when compared with men over 50.
It seems clear then, that many women are not even asking the question upon agreeing a divorce settlement. It is more important now than ever before that the question of sufficiency in retirement is tabled during in settlement talks. It is just as relevant as child care and the split of matrimonial assets.
It’s pretty straight forward. If you have sacrificed a career to raise children, or even settled in a job just to help make ends meet within the marriage, there is a fair question of income equalisation after retirement that needs to be asked and answered.
I am an IFA with expertise in the field of Pensions on Divorce. If you are going through a divorce and need advice, or if the issue has never been raised for you and you feel that this is something that you would like to talk about then please get in touch:
01204 663904
Image credit: flickr.com/tax credits
Tags: Advice, Cash Equivalent Transfer Value, Divorce, external transfer, Financial Advice, Financial Planning, Financial Settlement, Pension, Pension Credit, Pension Scheme, Pension Sharing, pension sharing order, Pension Sharing Orders, Pensions & divorce, Pensions and Divorce, Personal Pension, Resolution Accredited Independent Financial Adviser, Settlement | Posted in Divorce, Pension Credit, Pension Sharing Order, Pensions & divorce |
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Posted August 25th, 2012
LIZ TAIT.
Liz is a fantastic solicitor and alternative dispute resolution practitioner.
Formerly the Head of the Family department at Stephensons solicitors, she is now a regular speaker and trainer in the field of collaborative law and believes that it is possible for couples to separate/ divorce with dignity and, where there are children, achieve a child focussed outcome – one where everyone will be OK. Liz is about helping parents through this transition to achieve a “good” divorce – one that is cost effective and one that allows parents to continue being parents in the future by co – parenting their children.
Liz and I are now working with colleagues on Bolton and District POD for Collaborative and Mediation services. We have a number of projects which we are collaborating on as we speak and we hope to announce further details of these in the very near future!
You can download more information here:
http://www.divorcejigsaw.co.uk/
Tags: Advice, co-parenting, Collaborative Law, Divorce, jigsaw, liz tait, Mediation | Posted in Divorce, Uncategorized |
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Posted August 21st, 2012
Question: The pension provider is refusing to implement the Pension Sharing Order without the signature of my ex spouse. Ours was an acrimonious divorce and he is extremely unlikely to comply with this request. What can I do?
Answer: Often Pension providers have a number of requirements to be completed by both parties, including the court documentation and other such requests, such as signing an indemnity by the ex spouse.
If it is not possible to do this then I would remind the Trustees of their obligations under the Court Order/Pension Sharing order and that it is their responsibility to implement the order in a timely manner. If they do not do so, threaten to report them to the Pension Regulator. This usually has the desired effect and hopefully your Order will be implemented promptly.
Tags: Advice, Court, Court Order, Divorce, Ex Spouse, Implementation Period, Implemented, Implementing, Order, Pension, Pension Regulator, Pension Sharing, pension sharing order, Pensions & divorce, Pensions and Divorce, Personal Pension, Settlement, Sharing, Spouse, Trustee, Trustees | Posted in Divorce, Financial Advice, Pension Attachment, Pension Sharing, Pension Sharing Order, Pensions & divorce |
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Posted August 15th, 2012
I am pleased to confirm that I have been re-accredited for a further five years, having recently completed the process via Resolution.
In order to qualify for re-accreditation I had to show that:
- I am a paid up affiliate member of Resolution.
- I am currently regulated by the FSA to provide Independent Financial Advice
- There are no matters affecting my competence or fitness to be held out as an accredited specialist of which Resolution should be aware.
- I have never been convicted of an offence in any court of the UK or elsewhere (other than a motoring offence not resulting in
disqualification).
- I continue to undertake a minimum of 36 cases per annum, or 150 hours family law case work each year and provide evidence of this for the preceding 12 months.
- Confirm that Resolution may approach a designated person for a reference in relation to the standard of my expertise.
I also had to provide the following documentary evidence:
- A schedule of case work for the 12 month period prior to my re-accreditation, demonstrating the 36 cases or 150 hours per annum
minimum casework required, and the name of the solicitor or mediator with whom I worked, or from whom the case was referred.
- A written reference from a referring family lawyer confirming the work carried out during the preceding 12 months, and that
the work was satisfactory.
- Details of my Continuing Professional Development (CPD) record for the preceding 5 years showing at least 8 hours of CPD in family law and practice topics for each year.
- The fee required by Resolution.
As you can see there is quite a lot involved in getting Reaccredited and we are serious about helping our clients get the best settlements possible. Don’t you owe to yourself to make sure the IFA you work with is this qualified.
If you want to talk please call 0800 092 1229 or email me – phil@white-well.co.uk
Tags: Advice, Financial Advice, Financial Planning, Financial Settlement, FSA, IFA, re - accreditation, Resolution, Resolution Accredited, Resolution Accredited Independent Financial Adviser | Posted in Uncategorized |
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Posted December 29th, 2010
Pension Offsetting – Need advice now?
Why not book a free no obligation review of how pension offsetting affects you.
Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation out there on what can and cannot be done with pension offsetting.
I offer a free 30 minute consultation by telephone so why not call me now on 0800 092 1229 to arrange or send an email to phil@thedivorceifa.co.uk Virtual sessions available webcam too!
Tags: 30 minute, Advice, Free, No obligation, Pension, Pension offsetting | Posted in Pension Offsetting |
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