A financial consent order is a legal document used to confirm the financial agreement made between a divorcing couple or civil partnership. While it might only be a small document in a long and varied divorce process, it is still important.
Why are Financial Consents Orders Necessary?
A financial consent order is a requirement for two divorcing people who want to share their financial assets in a specific way. While some divorces end with open claims that linger for long after the divorce itself, a financial order is a legally binding way of reaching an agreement that finalizes that aspect of the divorce.
In other words, a financial consent order is a document that proves the consent of both parties when they agree to a financial arrangement they are both happy with.
While legally binding, these documents can be adjusted in the future as long as both parties agree. However, the nature of these documents means that changes can only be made if both sides of the divorce consent to the changes – in other words, the court will not be able to force one side to make the change that the other has proposed, the court will only allow it if they both agree.
How Do You Get Financial Consent Orders?
While templates for a consent order are easy enough to find online, this does not allow them to be made for free. Financial consent orders are specific to each divorce and need to take into account a wide range of family law details that will vary from situation to situation.
This means that working with professionals and legal experts is often the best option for getting a financial consent order. While you may need to pay for their help, this will also ensure a properly formatted financial consent order.
As a legal document, there is a lot of potential for misunderstandings and loopholes if not prepared properly, which is why hiring the right professionals is such a key step. Even if both parties agree to something, it needs to be formalized in the right way to become legally binding.
When Do You Need a Consent Order?
When the time comes to share out your assets and savings, the last thing you want is an argument about who owns what and how much they are entitled to. The more you can work together to agree on the details, the smoother the divorce process will be.
A consent order can help to make that easier. When a couple works together to write out the consent order, they are essentially laying down a contract in front of the court – an agreement that sets out exactly how the assets will be divided up in the divorce.
Of course, in practice, getting to that point can be difficult. It is not always easy to agree with your ex about what should happen to the family home or the savings accounts. However, pursuing a fair agreement is always the easiest option if possible, and these orders make that process much more streamlined and legally reliable.
