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Divorce advice: see you out of court!

29 March 2024 / Joanna Newton
Issue: 8065 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Family , Divorce , Mediation
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More separating couples are choosing less adversarial divorce processes. Joanna Newton provides an Easter refresher course on the options available
  • Discusses the options available to divorcing couples when it comes to resolving disputes, including FDR, as well as non-court-based options such as private FDR, mediation, collaborative divorce and arbitration.

Court-based financial dispute resolution (FDR) hearings have always been a useful tool in settling financial disputes without the need for a final court hearing. It is up to the judge on the day to make a decision as to how a separating couple’s finances will be divided.

Gradually, over the past few years—and particularly in the wake of no-fault divorce—more couples are seeking resolution to their financial settlement through less adversarial methods. Options include mediation, arbitration and private FDRs. Family lawyers are seeing a marked reduction in the number of couples going to final hearing, instead choosing more cost-effective, less acrimonious routes to getting a consent order in place. In 2018, 14% of finance cases went

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