There are three (3) basic methods to attain a split –
1. Binding Financial Agreement – entered into between you after being advised by separate lawyers;
2. Application and Minutes of Consent Orders at Court – effectively similar to a Binding Financial Agreement but paperwork is lodged with and approved by Court – you may need to attend Court if you have children; and
3. Court action.
The first two are by agreement, the latter is where you are unable to agree the split and so are requesting the Court (ie the Judge) to do so on your behalf.
If you amicably agree a split at a level with which you are comfortable, ie getting agreement from your ex at say 40/60, 45/55 or 50/50, then a relevant Binding Financial Agreement can be prepared (cheaper, quicker but less certain – click here for reasons why a Binding Financial Agreement might be later overturned), or you prepare the Application and Minutes of Consent Orders for the Court (more costly, longer yet completely certain).
Calculation of the % split starts at 50/50 for any relationship of substantial duration, then is affected by a range of factors including –
1. relative ages of the parties,
2. what qualifications, skills and experience each party has attained,
3. ability to earn future income,
4. the size of the asset pool,
5. what each party brought into the relationship at the commencement of the relationship,
6. what each party contributed during the course of the relationship,
7. the future needs of the parties (any health issues etc), and
8. what is generally regarded as fair and reasonable in all the circumstances.
At the end of the day it is a subjective assessment – an ‘art’ not a ‘science’.
You of course want to avoid the third method, being the most expensive, time consuming and stressful.
