The only winner in divorce is the solicitor. Your son can represent himself. wikidivorce is a fab site for advice. Legal aid is almost impossible to get now. I helped a male friend with his divorce and all worked out well. Good luck.
------------- Kent. Aug '10
Sussex. May '11
Wales, Aug '11
Hayling Island, Aug '13
If you do your own divorce all you pay are for the court fees and any necessary documentation. Just go to the local divorce court and the clerk in the office will help you to get started. That's all I did and it was much quicker and cheaper than going through solicitors.
yep 14 years ago my stupid ex wife, went to court, it cost us both £5,000 and ended up with what we had agreed to a year earlier, yes you are quite right, solicitors are rip-off merchants.
I have read through this thread for a friend but can any help with some questions?
They have been split up for two years, or very nearly have to my knowledge.
She lives in the council house they both lived in before.
Both lads are over the age of 18.One still with mom.
My Friend now lives in a flat.
apart from ex wife may not sign papers, is there anything else to be thinking of.Friend does have stuff at property but she will not let him have it .He also had a car his kids trashed.
Will it be a flat rate if he decides to do most of it on his own.I guess he will accept the car and his other stuff will not be worth chasing.
Solicitors are there to fight your corner if that's what they are instructed to do. I work in a legal firm (no longer doing divorce work) and lost count of the times when clients were advised to come to an amicable settlement with the other half but point blank refused, even though they had been told it would cost them a fortune to fight over what were often trivial matters. When divorce happens, sorry to say some people are determined to have their day in Court.
The Conciliation Service can often be a worthwhile investment and a good way to sort an amicable settlement. The Solicitor will refer you to them if you wish.
As has already been said, legal aid is almost impossible to get these days, even on a low income and to keep the costs down, it's always best to try to resolve issues between the parties, without acrimony. I understand the Court fees alone now (paid to the Court to issue the Pettion, not for the Solicitors fees) are in excess of £300. Running up legal bills of thousands of pounds is not uncommon, often when the issues could have been sorted out at an earlier stage on a friendly basis.
Quote: Originally posted by Patches on 11/1/2015
[to keep the costs down, it's always best to try to resolve issues between the parties, without acrimony.
So what happens when conciliation/resolution is definitely NOT an option and divorce IS the only solution?
------------- Tigermouse
I have a very temperamental personality - 50% temper and 50% mental
Quote: Originally posted by suns on 11/1/2015
I have read through this thread for a friend but can any help with some questions?
They have been split up for two years, or very nearly have to my knowledge.
She lives in the council house they both lived in before.
Both lads are over the age of 18.One still with mom.
My Friend now lives in a flat.
apart from ex wife may not sign papers, is there anything else to be thinking of.Friend does have stuff at property but she will not let him have it .He also had a car his kids trashed.
Will it be a flat rate if he decides to do most of it on his own.I guess he will accept the car and his other stuff will not be worth chasing.
If they have been apart for 2yrs & they both agree to the divorce then that can be done with no fault, ie 1 party does not have to admit to 'unreasonable behaviour' or whatever. If she won't agree then after 5yrs apart he can get a divorce without her consent.
Most solictors will offer flat rate to do the whole thing. Obviously a few £100s including letters, court fees etc. He needs to ascertain that she will consent & sort out beforehand about the gear. What costs extra money is extra letters/phone calls by solicitor so he needs her complete cooperation otherwise he might as well wait until 5yrs is up.
I'd say goodbye to the car and other stuff and just go ahead and try doing it alone. As the children are over eighteen they are considered adults. If she doesn't agree to an amicable divorce then he will have to wait for five years.He will just be able to divorce her then whether she wants it or not. I wouldn't engage a solicitor as there is no property or young children involved.