Before you can take your case to court to commence divorce financial proceedings both you and your spouse could, in certain circumstances, have to meet with a mediator.

This independent third party is there to aid discussions between you and your spouse.

There are some situations where meeting with a mediator before commencing divorce financial proceedings at court is not obligatory, such as if there’s been domestic abuse between you and your spouse.

A good solicitor will help you prepare for the mediation by discussing with you the outcomes you would like to achieve.

An experienced solicitor will also be able to talk you through the likelihood of your case ending up in court.

If mediation doesn’t work or if it’s decided that mediation isn’t appropriate for you, you will then need to fill in a C100 form before you go to court. This form shows that you and your spouse have considered mediation.

Austin Kemp specialise in helping high net worth individuals through this process and understand the complexities international assets and investments can add to the divorce process, especially when it comes to negotiating the financial settlement when dealing with financial proceedings.

Getting the right, specialist legal advice early on can make a real difference to the outcome of your case.

It is important to try to discuss this with your partner before taking the matter to court. Some couples can come to an agreement between themselves on who pays the school fees or who pays what percentage of the school fees.

If you cannot come to an agreement with your partner then you can get a school fees order during your financial divorce settlement.

When a marriage breaks down and there are children involved the court’s primary consideration is their welfare and needs. If one parent is taking the majority of responsibility for the childcare then the other parent must make payments towards the upkeep of the children.

Child financial provision is usually decided by the court at the same time as the other finances are decided.

This is generally the case if the parent not taking the majority of responsibility for the childcare will probably be paying over the minimum amount of support required because they are more wealthy than the parent that is responsible for the majority of the childcare.

This is when who pays how much of the school fees will be decided.

The court will look at factors such as whether the child already goes to a private school or it was expected that they’d go to a private school.

Another factor the court could take into account is that private school is more common in England than in mainland Europe.

Alternatively, you can make an application via the Children Act.

Both parents always have financial responsibility towards their child. When two parents separate, the money that the non-resident parent pays as child maintenance goes towards the upkeep of their child.

It is important to note that with regards to child maintenance, a child is seen as someone under the age of 16 or under the age of 19 in full-time education (not higher than A-level).

Sometimes, an application will be made by the primary carer of the children to the Child Support Agency, soon to be replaced by the Child Maintenance Service, although it is worth noting that they are unable to make an assessment if the other parent is living abroad. Going via these two agencies will mean that you get the most basic level of child support available to you as the primary carer.

Whether you use the Child Support Agency or the Child Maintenance service will depend on a number of things including how many children you have.

The Child Support Agency calculates support through the other parent’s net income whereas the Child Maintenance Service calculates using the other parent’s gross income.

It is worth noting that both of these bodies have the power to take payments directly out of income.

If the non-resident parent is a high earner (more than £104,000 per year) then the Child Support Agency has a limited role. The court can then order what to do with regards to child maintenance.

The process of getting a divorce can be a highly emotional experience. Sometimes, couples find it hard to talk to each other without arguing, especially when finances are discussed.

Emotionally charged discussions can make it hard for couples to reach conclusions about their financial settlement.

Asking a solicitor to negotiate on your behalf can take a great deal of stress out of the divorce proceedings. You will not have to discuss finances directly with your spouse, as your solicitors can do this for you, on your instruction.

Your solicitor is also able to offer you advice throughout every part of the negotiation process, making sure that you get the best financial settlement possible.

Sometimes, having a solicitor negotiating for you can give you that much needed distance from your spouse.

Austin Kemp has a team of solicitors who specialise in high net worth individuals and are highly skilled in negotiating on your behalf to achieve the best possible outcome for you. If a satisfactory agreement cannot be reached then we are experienced in taking your case to court and can also advise on international court proceedings, if necessary.

If you’ve decided that you want your solicitor to negotiate the financial side of your divorce on your behalf then your solicitor will ask you to gather information about your finances, known as financial disclosure.

You will probably be asked to fill out a Form E with your financial information. After this, your solicitor will exchange your financial information for your spouse’s financial information.

Once this has happened, your solicitor will give you advice and talk you through your options before you decide what you would like to aim for and what kind of settlement you wouldn’t be happy with.

Your solicitor can then start negotiations with your spouse’s solicitor until a conclusion is reached that both you and your spouse are satisfied with.

If you cannot reach a settlement then you may have to go to court or pay for a family arbitrator.

Austin Kemp specialise in negotiating on behalf of high net worth individuals, or spouses of high net worth individuals, who have assets and investments around the world.

Our experienced team are skilled in high net worth negotiations and understand how to get you the best possible outcome.

We are also able to help if you think your spouse is hiding their assets or if your spouse thinks you have more assets than you actually do.