We help if you are setting up home together, getting married, or financing your children’s house purchase.

New house, new life together – we don’t want to rain on your parade but  sometimes things just don’t work out the way you thought. Preparing now can help enormously if things don’t go to plan.

How we can help.

And it’s not just if you’re the one in the relationship. If you’re a parent who’s helping your son and daughter with a house purchase, then we can help you protect your share of the deal.

  • We can arrange a prenuptial agreement before you marry
  • We can arrange a living together/cohabitation agreement
  • We can help with a Deed of Trust to protect your share of the house
Prenuptial Agreements and Deeds Of Trust Oxford London St Albans. Family First Solicitors - Family Lawyers and Divorce Solicitors Oxford London St Albans

Prenuptial Agreements and Deeds of Trust – What you need to know…

Pre nuptial agreements.

Prenuptial agreements are becoming more common. The purpose is to ring fence your money and belongings so that, if you divorce, the Judge has guidelines on how to allocate the assets.

In America (where much of our more recent law ideas come from, as well as our best films about prenuptial agreements), the concept of the “prenup” is part of their legal system.

Over here, a prenup is still not written into law as legally binding. However, because ‘all the circumstances of the case’ can be taken into consideration, if there is a prenup, it is part of the relevant factors a Judge must think about.

Approach it rationally, think of it as insurance. Make sure it contains sensible housing provisions for your spouse – any prenup that throws your ex-wife on the street to live under the arches is not going to be upheld if it is challenged.

Ensure you work out what will change if/when children arrive on the scene.

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What, if any, maintenance provisions should go in it?

  • Make sure you have both disclosed your assets and your income and your debts to each other, in writing, before the prenuptial is signed.
  • Do not leave it until a few days before the wedding to enter into a prenuptial agreement. Plan it early so neither of you feel under pressure to sign it.
  • Have legal advice before signing it. That means you both need to see an independent lawyer.
  • Like we said before, a prenuptial agreement is not binding in the strict sense of the word. But recent case law has meant that judges are happy to uphold agreements reached with legal advice and full disclosure.
  • If you are starry eyed twenty-year olds starting out married life with nothing but a spotted hanky on a stick, then a prenuptial agreement is probably not necessary.
  • If you have significant assets in your own name, then can you afford to be without one?
family first, solicitors, oxford, prenupt

Deeds of Trust.

If you are putting money into a house purchase but you are not married, then you could be gambling your money unless you set down exactly who owns what share…

  • There is no such thing as a common law marriage
  • Do not rely on the conveyancing solicitor to deal with it
  • It will save you £££thousands if things go wrong…
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Divorce, Separation and Family Law: Frequently Asked Questions

If you are considering separation or divorce, you will have questions about the rules, costs and common misconceptions surrounding family law and divorce.

In this section, we cover the most frequently asked questions we receive about family law, separation and divorce, and we continually add new topics as they arise.

If your query is not covered, simply call us on 03334 440 003 of fill in the enquiry form below and we’ll do our best to help you.

When do I not want a pre-nup?

When do I not want a pre-nup?

Why wouldn’t you want to sort out the sticky ending, when in a positive and optimistic and productive frame of mind, rather than the dark underbelly of being in a divorce?

Read more...
Prenuptial Agreements and Deeds Of Trust Oxford London St Albans. Family First Solicitors - Family Lawyers and Divorce Solicitors Oxford London St Albans

Why do I need a Pre-nup?

Why do I need a Pre-nup? New house, new life together, we don’t want to bring you down but preparing now can help if things don’t go to plan.

Read more...

How are finances usually divided in a divorce?

In England and Wales, the division of finances during a divorce is based on the principles of fairness and meeting the needs of both parties. The legislation that governs financial settlements in divorce cases in the UK is the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973. Section 25.

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Will I have to go to court?

Generally not! It very much depends on one overriding factor in our experience – personality. That’s because there is ALWAYS a way to fix things, even in the most complicated scenarios, if people are reasonable and can listen to the other person’s point of view.

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What happens to maintenance if one of us remarries?

If the person receiving the maintenance remarries, then maintenance payments are immediately terminated under the law. If the paying person remarries then there is no effect on the maintenance by law. However, the payer may ask the court to drop their payment down.

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Who pays the legal fees in the divorce?

The costs of a divorce only are generally borne by the party making the divorce application. You can ask the court to make your ex-spouse pay the costs later down the line, but you need to remember to apply for it on the online divorce platform.

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My partner is violent, what can I do?

Contact helplines and support organisations: In the UK, you can contact organisations such as the National Domestic Violence Helpline at 0808 2000 247 or Women’s Aid for support, advice, and guidance

Read more...
Red Question mark over pink piggy bank. how much maintenance am I entitled to?

How much maintenance am I entitled to?

“Entitled to” is the wrong way of looking at it really. It makes more sense to say “ how much to I need” as a starting point, for most people. For the very rich few, there may be a concept of “entitlement” but even then it is not a given.

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What financial information will I need to give for Divorce?

When you are dealing with financial matters in divorce, there will come a point where you are told to disclose your assets and your income. Even if you have decided that you don’t need to do full deep dive bank statement disclosure, there will still be some financial disclosure.

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What If My Spouse Refuses To Accept The Divorce?

Since April 2022, it is far less likely that your spouse will refuse to accept the divorce. The fact that there is no ‘blame’ in the new divorce process means that it is likely that both parties know that the marriage is over and will both want to get to legal closure and officially separate.

However, the legal process can sometimes be abused by a spouse not engaging in the process…

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What If I’m Stuck In The Old Divorce Process?

If your divorce began before 06th April 2022, then you will be in the old system of ‘fault-based’ divorce.

The old fault-based UK divorce system dated from 1973 and was complicated by the requirement for the Petitioner to rely on a ‘fact’ to supports the grounds for divorce. In addition to the ‘ground’ for divorce being ‘irretrievable breakdown’, one of these five ‘facts’ had to be proven:

1. Adultery
2. Desertion
3. Unreasonable Behaviour
4. Separation for 2 years with consent (this was often the least contentious and ‘nicest’ fact)
5. Separation for 5 years due to one party refusing to consent to the divorce

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What are Grounds for Divorce?

In the bad old days, you needed to give a ‘fact’ as grounds for divorce: adultery, desertion, unreasonable behaviour, separation for two years with consent (both of you agree to Divorce) or, as a last resort, separation for five years if one party is refusing the divorce.

As you can imagine, this generated a lot of work for family lawyers and a great deal of unhappiness and ‘finger pointing’ between spouses. It added a layer of complexity, and lots of money was spent on the technicalities – going back and forth trying to negotiate your way out of them.

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Can I Stop My Spouse Dissipating Our Assets?

In some divorces, there’s a real danger that assets of significant value will be lost, spent or somehow dissipated before the divorce is finalised.

If there is evidence that a spouse is about to make a disposition with the intention to of defeating the Applicant’s claim for financial relief, then you can make an application for an Injunction to stop them. If you can show that the intended disposition would completely ruin your chances of a just financial outcome, then the court will presume that that is the intention. The court will make such an order as it thinks fit to restrain the Respondent from disposing of the assets, or whatever it takes to protect your claim.

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Mediation, Family first solicitors

What is Mediation?

Family Mediation helps people who have been in some kind of relationship, end it with dignity and fairness to all.

The Mediator is a trained professional who is neutral. The Mediator does not take a side, but they will try and help with issues that affect the both of you, ensuring that both of you see things for each other’s perspectives.

The Mediator will meet with both parties individually at first…

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Should I apply for a Divorce solely or jointly?

As a general rule, if you can, you should try to make a joint application. That way, there are no surprises and it is the outcome that you both know you need. If you think your spouse is likely to be uncooperative – even after some advice and catching up emotionally – you may be better off making a sole application. There is no longer an option to contest a divorce. However, there may be issues with the service of the divorce papers. If that becomes a problem, we can help.

If you are in a domestically abusive relationship…

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"Pound sterling symbol on a money bag, with wooden human counters either side of it" How much does divorce cost in 2023. Family First Solicitors

How much does a Divorce cost in the UK in 2023?

The cost of the divorce itself should be relatively inexpensive. You can keep the divorce cost down in two different ways:

1. Doing much of the administrative work on your divorce yourself.
This method of managing the cost of a divorce only costs you your time and the current court fee of £593, which you can pay to the court via their online system.

2. Instructing a Solicitor for help with your Divorce.
This could be because you don’t have the time to do the admin, because you are feeling overwhelmed or you don’t the mental bandwidth for it right now. Family First Solicitors offer fixed fee divorce at £900 +VAT. The court fee of £593 is still payable in full.

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"A question mark on a calendar". How long does divorce take in 2023. Family first solicitors

How long does a Divorce take in 2023?

If you are filing online (i.e. after April 2022), the process will take around 6-8 months.
This is because we find that most people have busy lives and need about a month to gather all of their paperwork, undertake conversations that need to be had, and get up and running before they press ‘go’.

There is then a little bit of delay built into the process

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How can I keep my divorce costs down?

Like any normal person, one of your biggest fears is spending all of your money on lawyers. You are quite right to be afraid, minimising your lawyer spend should be a priority both for you and your spouse.

So if you’re asking “How can I keep my divorce costs down?”, here are four options…

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Can I stop my house being sold?

Sometimes, when things get heated; one spouse says to the other: “I’m going to make you sell the house”. You will naturally be wondering “Can I stop my house being sold?” Well, at least, on a temporary basis that the answer is generally yes, you can stop the house being sold.

Lets look at the various scenarios:

1. You are a joint owner of the house. It’s really simple…

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Client Stories: Family Lawyers & Divorce Solicitors Oxford and London

Family Law Articles and Advice

Our first meeting is £360 and it takes as long as it takes.

We think that many couples should be able to manage their own divorce and use our Pay as You Go service to check they are getting things right along the way.

Cheap Divorce. Cost of divorce. How Pay As You Go Divorce is cheaper than traditional divorce

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Fill in the form and we’ll call you back.

Ready to Book?

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