Divorce questions
Posted: February 10th, 2019, 11:23 pm
I am trying to assist a friend who needs some pointers following the collapse of his marriage.
In a nutshell...
He met a girl in 2015. They were engaged in August 2016 and married in July 2018. But in October 2018 after just three months of marriage, out of the blue, she left him, saying she had made a mistake tying herself down. (She is 22 and he is in his thirties, if relevant). Within a few weeks she rented a flat jointly with a male colleague with whom she now works. Not sure if there is a relationship there or just a friendship.
Regarding the finances, my friend has a reasonably well paid job, has owned a house for about five years (bought well before meeting wife) with a mortgage outstanding. During the marriage (and before the marriage, when she lived with him) he paid all the bills, including the mortgage, whilst she tended to pay for the food etc. But during her time with him she was out of work on several occasions, during which periods my friend paid everything, including her spending money, mobile etc. He does have debts of well into five figures, being paid via a debt management plan arranged via Step Change. She works for an agency, in a call centre, probably minimum wage or thereabouts.
The split is, thus far, amicable. She has said she wants nothing from him.
He has several worries but seems reluctant to get proper advice, probably for fear of prematurely opening a can of worms.
Divorce cannot be contemplated until they have been married a year, but presumably it can be ended reasonably easily if she admits adultery; otherwise they will, I believe need two years separation – is this from date she leaves, or does the clock start at the point when divorce can be started; i.e. after twelve months of marriage?
Is there anything he should, or indeed can do to start anything legal, either towards the divorce or to settle the financial side of it?
Another worry he has about seeing a solicitor now to try to pin down a financial agreement is that he knows that she will have to have her own solicitor, and he thinks her solicitor is likely to advise her against taking nothing.
I have read that short marriages are often dealt with differently to those of longer duration when it comes to dividing assets, but how rigid is this?
Given the circumstances, he hopes she will be true to her word, and feels her having anything would not be morally right given her behaviour, but he knows that as far as the law is concerned, that means little or nothing.
Sorry for the ramble, but in summary, I guess the main questions are:
1. should he do anything now
2. what is the most likely ultimate outcome?
I think I am too close to be objective, so would be grateful for any thoughts. Happy to clarify anything further if necessary.
In a nutshell...
He met a girl in 2015. They were engaged in August 2016 and married in July 2018. But in October 2018 after just three months of marriage, out of the blue, she left him, saying she had made a mistake tying herself down. (She is 22 and he is in his thirties, if relevant). Within a few weeks she rented a flat jointly with a male colleague with whom she now works. Not sure if there is a relationship there or just a friendship.
Regarding the finances, my friend has a reasonably well paid job, has owned a house for about five years (bought well before meeting wife) with a mortgage outstanding. During the marriage (and before the marriage, when she lived with him) he paid all the bills, including the mortgage, whilst she tended to pay for the food etc. But during her time with him she was out of work on several occasions, during which periods my friend paid everything, including her spending money, mobile etc. He does have debts of well into five figures, being paid via a debt management plan arranged via Step Change. She works for an agency, in a call centre, probably minimum wage or thereabouts.
The split is, thus far, amicable. She has said she wants nothing from him.
He has several worries but seems reluctant to get proper advice, probably for fear of prematurely opening a can of worms.
Divorce cannot be contemplated until they have been married a year, but presumably it can be ended reasonably easily if she admits adultery; otherwise they will, I believe need two years separation – is this from date she leaves, or does the clock start at the point when divorce can be started; i.e. after twelve months of marriage?
Is there anything he should, or indeed can do to start anything legal, either towards the divorce or to settle the financial side of it?
Another worry he has about seeing a solicitor now to try to pin down a financial agreement is that he knows that she will have to have her own solicitor, and he thinks her solicitor is likely to advise her against taking nothing.
I have read that short marriages are often dealt with differently to those of longer duration when it comes to dividing assets, but how rigid is this?
Given the circumstances, he hopes she will be true to her word, and feels her having anything would not be morally right given her behaviour, but he knows that as far as the law is concerned, that means little or nothing.
Sorry for the ramble, but in summary, I guess the main questions are:
1. should he do anything now
2. what is the most likely ultimate outcome?
I think I am too close to be objective, so would be grateful for any thoughts. Happy to clarify anything further if necessary.