What Can A Wife Claim In A Divorce
- Posted by:
- Admin
- Tags:
- Divorce, Assets, Property
- Posted date:
- 20-05-2022

Find out what a wife can claim in a divorce. Kent Property Witness offer RICS expert witness surveyor services for Tonbridge and Kent. Find out what you are entitled to in a divorce and how money and financial assets are split.
Balancing your matrimonial assets during a divorce settlement can be mentally and financially taxing, with many former spouses unsure of their financial claims.
If you find yourself in divorce proceedings, you can seek legal advice and familiarise yourself with what you are entitled to. Keep reading this article for more information to ensure you receive a fair outcome.
What Am I Entitled To In a Divorce?
Every divorce financial settlement is unique, meaning marital assets between married partners cannot be divided via a perfect formula.
Where many married couples lived in a joint family home and had joint finances and regular spousal maintenance payments, you both feel an inclination that you deserve your share.
Of course, both you and your former spouse are correct in that mindset, and your financial assets must be assessed, with independent legal advice available to ensure no one is left behind. Seeking professional advice for your divorce settlement is always a good idea, whether the relationship ended amicably or not. You should ensure your settlement is legally binding, with a consent order being drafted by a legal professional.

If you do not get a legally binding divorce settlement, the court cannot back you up or enforce details at a later point.
If you have signed a prenuptial agreement before getting together, you should check this document about everything you both pre-agreed on. Make your solicitor fully aware of this document, and they can inform you of what you are entitled to.
You should always attempt to reach a strong and fair settlement before official divorce proceedings begin, as you can experience more legal costs and delayed resolutions if you do not.
The time duration required to process divorces can take over six months, but there are exceptional circumstances where you can speed this up. For example, if one party to the marriage is terminally ill and you would like a divorce before they pass away, this can be accepted in some cases.
The court can deliver its final settlement to you when the decree nisi is made, which you cannot get divorced without.
What is a Divorce Settlement?
Whether you have filed for divorce or find yourself in divorce proceedings otherwise, you should always strive for a fair divorce settlement. You can incur many legal costs when experiencing a divorce, as the process can become incredibly costly.
While divorce laws regularly change in England and Wales, reaching financial settlements between husband and wife or civil partnership dissolution is the division agreement of the asset and money you have collected together over your married years.

Court fees can and regularly change, with financial arrangements being made for those that cannot afford to attend court. You can also apply for a divorce online, either working with law firms or by yourself. You should always seek advice regardless, though.
After your initial application, a conditional order will be required via a D84 form. If you are entitled to a divorce, and the judge is happy to proceed, you will receive a Certificate of Entitlement to Conditional Order, meaning your date and time at court are provided to you both.
How are money and financial assets split in a divorce?
While in the divorce process with your soon-to-be ex-partner, you should understand the various assets and how they are split.
Any significant assets built by you and your partner throughout the duration of your marriage are referred to as matrimonial assets.
These financial ties are typically pensions, property, personal belongings, cash in the bank and savings. Although there may be other financial resources you both acquired during your marriage, these are the main contenders and will be the primary considerations during divorce settlements.
Anything you or your partner acquired before the marriage (property, businesses or pensions) is referred to as non-matrimonial assets. There is no huge difference between the two, but they are usually treated differently.
There are situations where these assets are not excluded from financial agreements, especially where you have used them throughout the marriage. If, for example, your financial needs were met by your spouse's inheritance or savings from before your marriage to buy a car or house, you can class these as marital assets.
Are personal savings classed as assets in a divorce?
If and when you are in an ongoing divorce settlement or dissolution of a civil partnership, all ISAs, personal savings and any other investments must be disclosed by legal aid during the process.
Such other assets can usually find equal division, even when the savings are held by one party under one name. Unless your spouse refuses, further legal advice will not be needed.
What does the court take into account when making a decision?
Although there are no absolute guarantees when a court decides the outcome of a divorce settlement, there are some things they consider.
When a marriage or civil partnership comes apart, a common expectation from the court process is that all assets will be divided equally.
The matrimonial pot of all your assets gathered between the two of you over the course of the marriage should receive an equal split. However, that's not always the case.
For some court hearings, it may make more sense for you or your former spouse to receive a lump sum from a property or marital home while your partner's pension remains with them. In an ideal settlement, divorcing couples should try not to one-up each other.
What is deemed fair can vary depending on all the circumstances and the nature of the divorce. The first consideration is always the two former spouses and the nature of the breakdown of the marriage.
If dependent children rely on living expenses, it will be fairer to ensure the guardian keeps more money. While you and your spouse may have once lived joint lives, you should have a realistic estimate of what you believe you are owed and what you believe they are owed. This is the only way to share equally those assets acquired during the marriage.
Are matrimonial assets split 50/50 in a divorce?
There is no law dictating that you should divide your assets equally between yourself and your partner, although couples choose to start there. In the name of attempting to reach a fair and equal conclusion, the court will assess factors outlined by the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973.
These include:
- The welfare of any children under the age of 18 and their situation for the foreseeable future.
- Any financial needs and responsibilities both sides of the marriage will face going forward.
- The income, property, future earnings, and financial resources each party currently owns or will own (earning capacity is heavily factored).
- Any physical or mental disability held by either party in the marriage.
- The age of each member of the marriage and the marriage's duration.
- The conduct of each member during the court proceedings.
Before you begin discussing financial assets with a qualified family solicitor and former spouse, be sure to consider your savings accounts.
Make sure all saving passbooks are up to date. You should consider getting your expensive items in your home valued, meaning your furniture, jewellery, cars and other household items.
Is my ex-husband or wife entitled to half my house?
Seeing as the matrimonial home is usually the most valuable asset, many couples face disagreements about who should own it after a divorce. It is a common misconception that the asset should be split evenly, as it does not always work that way.
There are a few ways of dividing assets such as a property that are common through divorce settlements:
Sell and Share: If both parties are interested in selling the property, this can be done, and they share the money to buy themselves individual new homes.
Buying Out: If the property is not sold, one of the partners can buy out the other spouse and become the sole owner of the marital home.
Transfer of value: Some cases involve one spouse transferring some property value to the other, meaning they own some stake in the house even though they no longer live there.
Unchanged Ownership: In cases where the spouses want little to change, one party can keep living on in the house while no legal ownership has changed.
Mesher Order: Exclusive to divorce laws in England and Wales, you can postpone the sale of a property until your youngest child moves out, and then the profits will be divided as the court agrees.
Splitting the matrimonial property reasonably can be challenging. Still, courts will always attempt to divide it by what they see as fair, with judges considering many different factors about your life before and after divorce.
Property Adjustment Orders are types of court orders designed to determine what happens to a family home after a divorce when the former partners cannot decide who should be the sole name (if any) on the lease.
When You Cannot Support Yourself
In situations where one partner cannot support themselves financially after a divorce, spousal maintenance is something you can rely on.
If your partner was the sole earner in the relationship, you can ask for them to pay spousal maintenance for further legal costs, child maintenance and your living standards going forward for a set time.
Maintenance payments from your former spouse can cover many things but vary in price depending on the following factors:
- Any special needs or disabilities
- Living standards prior to the divorce
- The length of the marriage
- Age of divorcees
If a former spouse refuses to pay for child maintenance, a financial order will be made by the court, enforcing payments. This can also be sent to your former spouse's employer to ensure you receive a monthly salary percentage as the spousal maintenance.
After a long marriage, you may have become accustomed to having the support of another person, but this support can swiftly go - meaning you will have difficulty supporting yourself independently.

If you cannot afford the solicitor's costs during the divorce settlement while the other party can, there are support systems in place for you as a divorcee. On the flip side, if you want to "buy out" your former spouse's maintenance claim, you can do this through a lump sum. Depending on your finances, lump sums can be paid through future payments or through a one-off transaction.
In Northern Ireland, both parties must agree to this - whereas, in England and Wales, courts can provide you with this. Remember, there is always expert legal advice you can seek (but always read independent third party reviews) as they will need experience in your personal circumstances.
If you have experienced domestic abuse, there is legal aid you can seek and the National LGBT Domestic Abuse helpline and 24-hour domestic violence helpline are there to provide you with support.
If you believe your former spouse is taking unethical steps against you during a divorce, speak to a solicitor and get professional legal advice to protect yourself.
It's of the utmost importance that the needs of each party member are considered when balancing assets after a divorce. You should benefit just as much as your partner, and we want to ensure you are not left behind.
Are you looking for advice about property valuation following a divorce for Tonbridge and Kent?
Contact us and give us a call about any information or advice about property valuation.