Legal Resources and News

The number of applications for child arrangements orders made by grandparents is increasing. 
It is, unfortunately, a sad fact that some grandparents do not have contact with their grandchildren. There are a variety of reasons for this including family fall-outs between the parents and grandparents, the separation of the parents, the relocation of a family many miles away and a death in the family which has caused communications to fail.

It is natural that where a marriage has broken down, there is usually at least one party feeling angry, sad, disappointed, or a mixture of all of those things. It is therefore very easy for a divorce (and any associated financial or children-related matters) to become a forum for airing those feelings and for parties to lose sight of what matters: moving on in the way which is most conducive to a positive future.

So, you have obtained the Final Order in your divorce proceedings and you are now divorced. Alongside all the things your solicitor will tell you as standard, (for example, that you have lost rights to pension benefits or benefits under other schemes that you would otherwise have had as a spouse), there are other, more practical, things you should be thinking about post Final Order:

If you are cohabiting it is important to understand that you do not have automatic rights or interests in your partner’s property, income, capital, pensions or assets generally. Neither do you have an automatic interest in their estate should they die before you. This can mean that if your relationship changes, in particular on separation, or in the event of death, you can find yourself financially as well as emotionally bereft.

Men are not automatically prejudiced by the legal system on divorce. However, most men will have heard horror stories about women getting the lion share of the money and children’s time. This is often where men have accepted the role of main breadwinner within the household. For most men, the steps they take immediately after the decision to separate is crucial in determining how much time they will spend with their children and the financial cost to them.