Pension and divorce

VickyG74

my ex husband and I divorced in April 2019. No official financial agreement was made and the divorce was a “diy” one. He has since sold the family home, giving me a small share of the profits. Would I be entitled to any of his private pension? He has been paying into it for over 35 years so is in line for a decent amount. He is 50 and I am 46, not quite ready to retire yet. Also if I remarried would this have an effect on matters? Any help on this subject would be very much appreciated 

AskAsk

here is some info on financial settlement after the divorce and re-marriage

https://www.lawdonut.co.uk/personal/divorce-and-family-law/divorce-settlements/divorce-financial-settlement-faqs#:~:text=2.-,At what stage in our divorce do we need to,settlement prior to the divorce.

elsien

How was the decision reached as to what share of the house you should have?
What about other assets such as savings, and your pension? 
How long had you been married for? 

Are there any children from the marriage? 

This would have been easier if you’d considered it when you divorced. What was the reason that you didn’t do it then? 

sassyblue

I agree with everything Elsien said.
Plus, Only the years you were married count in pension sharing too. Don’t get remarried until this is sorted out.  Are you sure you didn’t have a Consent Order at the end of the divorce?  You said HE decided to sell the former family home, were you named on the deeds?

Keep_pedalling

How long were you married? Unless it was a short one, your starting point would be a 50/50 split of all marital assets which includes any pensions you both have. Do you have children?

VickyG74

Thank you for all comments! We were married from 1997 until the divorce in 2019 (although we did break up in 2018) My ex husband has always earned significantly more than me and was always in charge of finances. In 2008 he developed a very bad gambling habit which resulted in our bankruptcy in 2013. During the time of his habit I was diagnosed with and fought cancer so the money issues we had (debt and lots of it) did not help. We split up 2015 for a short period and he promised he would change so I gave the marriage another try. By the end of 2017 it was clear he had not changed when the day before Xmas eve our bank cards were declined in a store and I discovered he’d gambled all our money away. When we split up in 2018 I did say I wanted nothing but a clean break and we divorced in 2019, nothing was signed in regards to finances. My ex has now moved on with his new partner and has since sold the home we jointly owned. After promising me a fifty fifty share of the profits of the sale (now I realise this was only to ensure I signed everything needed) he has decided I’m not entitled to half as he paid the mortgage solely for the last 2 years. I have been told I’m foolish to walk away with nothing considering everything he put me through during the marriage and I understand that I do appear to be bitter (not going to lie, I am a tad) but would just love to know where I stand with anything. We had 2 children together (now grown) 
So sorry for the extremely long post but anything anyone has to say would be received most gratefully!

Tigsteroonie

Could you add a bit more information:

England/Wales or Scotland (the legal process is different)

What's your employment history and pension situation?

VickyG74

I live in England. I have been in full time employment for 12 years and have been paying into the employer pension (nest I think it’s called) I don’t have any other pensions or any savings etc, I have my monthly wage and that is it

sassyblue

You need to make an appointment with a solicitor very quickly. You are entitled to at least half of the net proceeds of sale and a share of his pension.  If the cancer left you with any long term health problems that affects the hours you are able to work then you could have been entitled to more.

DO NOT DELAY. get an appointment with a recommended solicitor arranged TODAY. you need to start the ball rolling before he gambles all the proceeds away....thinking while I type.....even if he has there’s an argument you can have more of a pension share to balance it out.

posts like yours make me so angry that you believed what he said and didn’t take proper legal advice. Not your fault but hopefully there is still time to get some money. Seriously, get it sorted!

sassyblue

Another thing.... you need to remember exactly what you signed when the house was sold and inform the solicitor.   Because you had divorced when the house had sold any net sale proceeds should have been split 50/50 with one half being paid into his bank and the other half into yours as the house was jointly owned.  I expect he told you/conned you into signing away your 50% then, do you remember signing such a document?

and him paying the mortgage for those 2 years did not give him authority to deduct money from you because I assume you’d moved out and we’re paying rent and we’re therefore unable to pay both rent and half the mortgage. 

elsien

Talk of the OP being conned is premature, without a lot more information about what was agreed, when and how. Including how much equity there was in the house, and how the house sale was processed. There was nothing to stop her from taking her own legal advice at the time.