length of time to divorce

[wjwren]

is there any advantage waiting the '2 year separation' period for getting divorce? Following on from my previous thread my girlfriend has been separated 2 years in December but her ex wouldn't move out the house till January - can you be separated and still living together? I believe you can - correct me if I'm wrong.

[Red Devil]

Yes you can, for up to 6 months, but it doesn't count towards the 2 year period.
You may find these links helpful.

http://www.lawdonut.co.uk/law/personal-law/cohabit...
http://www.familylawweek.co.uk/site.aspx?i=ed85431
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/tctmanual/tctm09350...

[Collectingbrass]

wjwren said:

is there any advantage waiting the '2 year separation' period for getting divorce?

It avoids the rancour & emotion of divorcing for unreasonable behaviour.

wjwren said:

Following on from my previous thread my girlfriend has been separated 2 years in December but her ex wouldn't move out the house till January - can you be separated and still living together? I believe you can - correct me if I'm wrong.

It can be very tricky and if the ex wants to contest the divorce petition it would be very easy to claim you weren't seperated during this period. For example shared laundy, shared cooking etc would be grounds to contest. If the divorce is agreed / not contested it's probably ok, but IANAL, I'm just divorced.

Get the Dummies Guide to Divorce book: it's the best guide to divorce there is. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Divorce-Dummies-2nd-UK-Edi...

[SHutchinson]

If neither side is going to contest anything just put it down to unreasonable behaviour. The whole thing will be done and dusted in about 2 months.

[vxr8mate]

Or adultery, unless he has been celibate all this time!

[ShawCrossShark]

vxr8mate said:

Or adultery, unless he has been celibate all this time!

Not this. I divorced on grounds of unreasonable behaviour as I was advised that adultery can make it very messy, even though she blatantly ran off with the other bloke

Unreasonable behaviour can apply to almost anything so is much easier to push through

[V8forweekends]

WTF are people on about? No-one contests divorce any more - there's been almost no point since 1974.

As for adultery being "very messy" eh? - this isn't the 1790s with crim. con. divorces being reported in special pamphlets.

[FuryExocet]

Dam I thought it was a year, that means I can't divorce for another 18 months, even though she is now living with the new man

[vxr8mate]

ShawCrossShark said:

vxr8mate said:

Or adultery, unless he has been celibate all this time!

Not this. I divorced on grounds of unreasonable behaviour as I was advised that adultery can make it very messy, even though she blatantly ran off with the other bloke

Unreasonable behaviour can apply to almost anything so is much easier to push through

Did my own divorce this year on grounds of adultery and found it quite easy.

[mph1977]

V8forweekends said:

WTF are people on about? No-one contests divorce any more - there's been almost no point since 1974.

As for adultery being "very messy" eh? - this isn't the 1790s with crim. con. divorces being reported in special pamphlets.

Still potential sources of extra hassle and cost.

Adultery as a reason really needs a co-respondent to be cited...

[GT03ROB]

FuryExocet said:

Dam I thought it was a year, that means I can't divorce for another 18 months, even though she is now living with the new man

Living with him & they are celibate? Otherwise you might have a case for adultery!

[anonymous-user]

There is no requirement to name a co respondent if adultery is relied on as the reason for the marriage breakdown. The courts pay little or no regard to fault when making financial orders.

[GuitarPlayer63]

Breadvan72 said:

There is no requirement to name a co respondent if adultery is relied on as the reason for the marriage breakdown. The courts pay little or no regard to fault when making financial orders.

This ^^^

If you can, avoid going to court to resolve who is getting what - you'll simply watch lawyers burn through your hard earned unless you have substantial assets that need a lawyer to defend. If it's possible (and I have done this) negotiate who gets what - it can be done but depending on the relationship may not be easy (but persistence can pay off - I wasted a lot of time trying to work through lawyers and her lawyer was incompetent and took nine months to agree to what I offered in the first place..

If it goes to a court, they look at who gained what in the time together and the needs of each party (if kids are involved then their needs can be considerable).

Good luck

[anonymous-user]

Use a mediator (who can be a lawyer) rather than adversarial lawyers. Do a deal, it's only money, and place the interests of the children above your own.