If your ex-spouse won’t comply with your Financial Court Order after you get divorced, what are your options?
You have an Order from the Court telling you who should pay what and when. You’re finished with all the stress and uncertainty of resolving financial matters with your ex now, right? For the vast majority of people, the answer to this question is a resounding yes.
If the Court has made an Order, that is generally the end of the matter. There are an unfortunate few, however, whose ex-spouse chooses to ignore the Financial Court Order and/or fails to comply with the terms.
So, what can you do if your ex-spouse refuses to comply with the terms of the Financial Order? This could involve a refusal or failure to:
- engage with the sale/ marketing of the family home, e.g. by refusing to instruct an estate agent, agree an asking price or sign documents
- transfer the family home or another property to you
- sell a solely owned property
- pay a lump sum
- pay maintenance
- implement a pension sharing order
Enforcing the Financial Court Order
This largely depends on exactly which term of the Court Order has not been complied with, but, importantly, the Court does have ways of enforcing any Order it makes and it is important to seek legal advice as early as possible to remedy the matter.
This can include –
- The Court signing documents on your ex-spouse’s behalf where they refuse to do so (for example, in respect of a property transfer. This scenario is explored in more detail below);
- The Court deciding issues you cannot agree on in relation to the marketing/ sale of a property;
- For unpaid lump sums (i.e. where an ex husband or wife is refusing to pay), the Court could order a sum to be taken directly from the ex-spouse’s bank account or grant a charge over property in your favour as security (so you would be paid when the property is sold);
- In respect of maintenance payments, the Court can require the employer of your ex-spouse to pay the sums due directly from their earned income, so that the money comes to you before your ex-spouse has a chance to choose not to pay;
- Requiring fines to be paid or ordering that assets belonging to your ex-spouse be seized; and
- In particularly serious circumstances, ordering that your ex-spouse be committed to prison.
If you are successful in an application to enforce a Financial Court Order, the Court is likely to Order your ex-spouse to pay your legal costs incurred in making the application.
Ignoring Court order to sell house
One of the most common reasons for an enforcement application is where an ex-spouse is refusing to cooperate with the sale of a property, in particular where that spouse has remained in that property post separation.
The Court can potentially assist with the following when dealing with an enforcement of a sale:
- Providing that one party have sole conduct of a sale i.e. that they be responsible for liaising with the estate agent regarding getting the property on the market for sale and setting a reasonable asking price, or reducing an asking price in line with an estate agent’s recommendations if there is little interest;
- Signing documents on behalf of an owner of the property so that a sale can complete;
- Potentially making a possession order to remove a party from a property if they are refusing to move out.
The Court can also use other enforcement methods as it sees fit where there is non-compliance. It is important to take legal advice as soon as possible if an ex-spouse is ignoring an order to sell a property as the process can be complex.
The importance of taking legal advice
Proceedings involving the enforcement of a Financial Court Order can sometimes highlight ambiguities in the drafting of the Financial Court Order in the first place, which can often be the reasoning (or excuse) for non-compliance.
It is therefore important to take legal advice at the time of reaching a financial agreement so that future potential non-compliances can be anticipated and dealt with at the time of drafting the Financial Court Order.
How the Courts view non-compliance
When the Court makes an Order, it expects that all parties abide by its terms – this is whether it is an Order agreed by consent between the parties, or an Order made by the Court.
Any failure to follow the terms of an Order will be treated seriously.
The Court understands that there are circumstances where one ex-spouse may make the implementation of any agreement very difficult. The Court also understands that it should not be necessary to return your case to Court in order to receive what is rightfully already yours.
The Courts, therefore, are often more open to ordering that the non-compliant ex-spouse pays your legal costs for making the application.
The longer matters are left, the more difficult it can be to remedy the situation and, in some circumstances, there are cut off points for bringing the matter before the Court.
As such, it is important to seek legal advice as soon as possible after the breach, so that all of your options can be explained to you.
To find out how we can help you resolve your financial matters after divorce, please click here.