Withdrawal of legal aid for family law cases has encouraged people to use ‘cheap’ online divorce options

Following changes in Public Funding (Legal Aid) eligibility for family law cases means that legal advice is no longer available for couples seeking a divorce or separation. This has allegedly led to an increase in do-it-yourself, online divorce options that are sold as a cost-effective alternative to professional legal support.

While a cheaper alternative to traditional legal services for divorce can sound attractive, too often people are left seeking out legal advice after they have been left with flawed divorce petitions and unjust settlements.

1 in 4 ‘DIY’ online divorce petitions have to be corrected due to errors

We were contacted by Julie* after she used an online divorce service to initiate her separation. After discovering that her financial arrangements hadn’t been settled from her previous marriage, our family lawyer, Laura Lambert, was able to quickly resolve her concerns before she got remarried.

Julie found that when applying for her divorce online, the online divorce petition was difficult to understand. While petitioning for her divorce, she was asked whether she wanted to apply for a financial order, but was unclear what this meant, and clicked ‘No’.

Applying for a financial order allows you to set out the financial arrangements between you and your partner when it comes to the division of assets and financial claims. As the petitioner, the person who initiates the divorce, you can still apply for a financial order in the future, but only before you remarry.

Julie came to RJS Solicitors as she was going to be remarried in just three weeks’ time. As the petitioner in her divorce, when Julie chose not to apply for a financial order, she was unable to resolve the financial arrangements from her first marriage. Her and her ex-partner still owned a mortgage-free property together and Laura had to quickly make an application to the courts to resolve the financial aspects of Julie’s first marriage.

This allowed Julie to make claim on 50% of the shared property without prejudice from her second marriage.

There’s a lot more to divorce than just ending your marriage

When it comes to separating your emotional and financial ties with your partner, having a specialist family solicitor to support you and your aims is essential.

Both parties to a marriage can make financial claims against the other in respect of property, pensions, maintenance, and lump sums upon either party’s death. These claims are not automatically ended through divorce proceedings. The decree absolute of divorce only ends the contract of marriage and divorce opens the possibility of making the above financial claims against your spouse.

Even when the separation is amicable, deciding how your assets, such as your home, business, pensions and savings, will be divided can be a difficult process. Seeking advice from an experienced family lawyer is essential to make sure your interests are properly represented.

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Our private client team is here to help. Laura’s reputation as a leading local family lawyer in Staffordshire has made her a valuable addition to RJS Solicitors’ private client team and the services it can offer. Laura’s key specialisms include divorce, separation from an unmarried partner, civil partnership dissolution, financial settlements, child arrangements and more.
For Simply good Advice for you and your family, contact Laura Lambert today: lauralambert@rjssolicitors.com

*names have been changed for the protection of our clients