Short Marriages and the Court’s Approach
The length of marriage has a significant impact on the division of finances in the event of divorce. With a high divorce rate in the UK, shorter marriages are quite common and the court follows a different approach when it comes to the distribution of income and assets.
Duration of Short Marriage
Before understanding the court’s approach to short marriages, it is important to know the length of a short marriage. As a general rule, a marriage is deemed to be ‘short’ if it lasted five years or less in duration.
It is important to note that there is no standard qualifying period for short or long marriages.
Under section 25 of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, the court has to consider the length of marriage when deciding financial settlements for divorce proceedings. The division of matrimonial assets for shorter, childless marriages is pretty straightforward.
In a long marriage, it is quite complicated to agree to future arrangements in terms of property, finances, and children. Since both parties to a long marriage have contributed a lot towards matrimonial assets and many non-marital properties may have also mingled leading to conflict between the couple.
Majorly, the court will consider the financial contribution of the couple from the date both parties started living together. The court will order fair and equitable arrangements focusing on their contributions till the date of separation. The court will consider if either party has to make sacrifices like giving up on their job or businesses, and if so, they may be compensated. In most cases, the financially vulnerable parties will be awarded enough funds to get suitable accommodation.
When formulating a financial settlement, the equal division of assets is not the paramount consideration, instead, the court is inclined to putting both parties “back on their feet”. Moreover, both parties will likely be given a share of the matrimonial property depending on the contribution.
Division of Assets
Some legal experts opine that the assets should be divided equally and fairly. However, the court may decide the distribution of assets as per the needs of the parties.
In short, childless marriages, it is easy to ring-fence non-matrimonial assets and prevent them from being shared between the parties.
Child Maintenance
If there are children involved, the ex-spouse has to pay adequate child maintenance regardless of the length of the marriage. The ex-spouse has to pay a specific amount monthly, quarterly, or yearly to the primary care to meet the needs of the child.
Clean Break
Unlike long marriages, it is more likely that you can get a clean break order for short, childless marriages. Both parties can cut financial ties by reaching an agreement that does not involve the Court.
Disclaimer:
The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Connaught Law and authors accept no responsibility for loss that may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please don’t hesitate to contact Connaught Law. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Connaught Law.
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