Recession Divorce
12th Sep 2011
Financial pressure on couples about to divorce is creating a new culture of ‘recession reconciliation’ among North East families, legal experts have revealed.
The cost of splitting up is keeping couples together and causing a drop in the divorce rate.
Difficulties in reaching agreement over property and finance means growing numbers of husbands and wives who are keen to start new lives apart are being forced into house sharing.
According to solicitors at regional firm BHP Law, some couples may not be able to make a clean break for years after splitting up because they cannot afford to buy each other out of the family home.
Andrea Hewitson, a Partner in the firm and a member of the Law Society Family Panel, said: “Couples are putting their divorce on hold because of the recession and, as a result, the divorce rate is decreasing. Unless families are wealthy, it’s very difficult to reach a financial agreement that satisfies both parties in the current climate.
“A recent trend we have seen is for couples having no option other than to stay under the same roof. They may be unable to sell their house or cannot financially afford for one party to move out because neither has the cash or the ability to borrow money to enable that to happen.”
Andrea said it was becoming increasingly popular for couples to seek an order where the spouse who does leave the family home keeps an interest in it until their children reach 18 or even older.
“This has been something that has tried to be avoided in the past but is becoming more common due to the financial circumstances families are finding themselves in,” she added.
The financial pressures, combined with new rules facing divorcing couples, may have a positive effect on families staying together.
Rules introduced in April this year demand that parting couples attend mediation in a bid to avoid going to court to reach settlements over money, property, possessions and arrangements for children.
Andrea said: “With mediation aiming to help people find a solution that meets each party’s needs and is fair, and the economic situation keeping people together longer, it may be that divorcing couples now have to co-operate better than they did in the past.”
Author: Andrea Hewiton, Partner (AndreaH@bhplaw.co.uk)
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