Divorce and share of wealth.

justworriedabit

A good friend of the family is getting divorced and they separated last week.
Both are in their late 30's.
They have a toddler aged under 5.
The man is worried that his wife will take at least half of his wealth.
The man is paid in excess of 50k per year and this was the case when they got married.
The man bought a property a few years ago for about 500k, now estimated to be worth 600k
The mans parents gave him a large amount of money towards the property as a gift well in excess
of 100k.
The man has several pensions. He has savings of close to sub 100k.
His wife did not work when they married. She worked for about 6 months grossing possibly less than 10k.
The reason the wife did not work was a bit of wanting to stdy, look after their child, not feeling, liking to work
and very picky re where she worked, hours etc. She had no savings.
A ball park idea of what will happen with the understanding that you could be well off target would help.
They are both going to contest the custody of the child.
For what it is worth, the wife had/is having an affair but says she is not now but the husband is not sure and does not care now.
I can't add anything else and the man has made an appointment for next week with someone that specialises in divorce. So please help
if you can as I will just read and then we will give him our thoughts with the helps of those that may have encountered something like this.
BTW. He is will to give his wife some wealth but nothing close to half as he fears for the 5/6 years they have been married but I look froward to your views on this.

JamoLew

probably 50/50 (although the 100k gift from the parents "may" be in question)

he was happy to accept and support her lifestyle choice for 5-6 years and make sacrifices to raise their child

there's a lot of he and she in there - as a married couple it is THEIRS - savings, the house, the pension - the lot

I dont have much sympathy for "money grabbing" but this I see as her right

Pollycat

Wikivorce has some interesting information regarding split of assets:

https://divorce.wikivorce.com/guides-financial-settlements/how-to-calculate-a-fair-financial-divorce-settlement.html

Read the 'White v White' section, specifically point 3 relating to wives not working or working part time.

And this bit that references the "The man bought a property a few years ago for about 500k, now estimated to be worth 600k
The mans parents gave him a large amount of money towards the property as a gift well in excess
of 100k." point:

• There is a distinction between what is referred to as matrimonial property and non-matrimonial property. Matrimonial property is that acquired during the marriage (other than by inheritance or a gift) and will include assets such as the family home. The non-matrimonial property is property that the husband and wife bring with them into the marriage or acquire by inheritance or gift during the marriage.

• In the case of a short marriage then fairness may well require that the matrimonial property should be divided equally but not the non-matrimonial property. As years go by and the marriage is longer then the distinction between matrimonial and non-matrimonial property will diminish.

gettingtheresometime

I'm not sure that there's anything that a bunch of armchair experts could add that a divorce lawyer, employed by someone of that wealth, wouldn't know

elsien

It’s not his wealth.
it’s their wealth. 

That’s the law. Unless something was put in place with regards to the gift for house when it was bought. 

CookieMonster

justworriedabit said:

A good friend of the family is getting divorced and they separated last week.
Both are in their late 30's.
They have a toddler aged under 5.
The man is worried that his wife will take at least half of his wealth.
The man is paid in excess of 50k per year and this was the case when they got married.
The man bought a property a few years ago for about 500k, now estimated to be worth 600k
The mans parents gave him a large amount of money towards the property as a gift well in excess
of 100k.
The man has several pensions. He has savings of close to sub 100k.
His wife did not work when they married. She worked for about 6 months grossing possibly less than 10k.
The reason the wife did not work was a bit of wanting to stdy, look after their child, not feeling, liking to work
and very picky re where she worked, hours etc. She had no savings.
A ball park idea of what will happen with the understanding that you could be well off target would help.
They are both going to contest the custody of the child.
For what it is worth, the wife had/is having an affair but says she is not now but the husband is not sure and does not care now.
I can't add anything else and the man has made an appointment for next week with someone that specialises in divorce. So please help
if you can as I will just read and then we will give him our thoughts with the helps of those that may have encountered something like this.
BTW. He is will to give his wife some wealth but nothing close to half as he fears for the 5/6 years they have been married but I look froward to your views on this.

It's probably going to cost him more than half his wealth, as well as part of his sanity, especially if married before the child was born (>5yrs). Length of the marriage is a key item in divorce.
Contesting the child = the solicitors are the winners.
He may even have to house the wife and child until the child is 18, possibly in the marital home, if the wife gets custody.
Child support, naturally, too, which may be a percentage of earnings.

justworriedabit

gettingtheresometime said:

I'm not sure that there's anything that a bunch of armchair experts could add that a divorce lawyer, employed by someone of that wealth, wouldn't know

You are right, that is what we said and having read your comments, we will reinforce that to him. Even when I was typing this thread in the back of my mind was that but I guess he, we all wanted an indication of past experiences/etc, but you've hit the nail on the head. We will tell him not to worry as worry won't help, and wait, prepare questions and then have a better idea if he can negotiate anything less than 50%. He will support their child fully regardless who gets full custody.
Just before I go, on the face of it, your post initially seemed harsh but it is true and a fact and that is what counts and I therefore appreciate the honesty/openness in your post.

Pollycat

Yes, gettingtheresometime's post is true (I didn't read it as 'harsh').

If I were in a situation that required legal advice, I'd be Googling for it in advance of preparing for paid legal advice rather than relying on comments from random strangers on t'interweb.

I'd probably start with the link in my earlier post to wikivorce.

Good to hear he will support his child fully.

Gavin83

How long have they been married and living together?

The likelihood of him keeping more than 50% of the assets is extremely slim indeed. It's far more likely that he'll end up with less than 50%. I'd tell him to keep his expectations low and that way he'll avoid disappointment. Does he know what she's requesting yet in terms of asset split?

The real question mark is around the gift. A lot will depend on what was drawn up at the time but a solicitor would be better placed to discuss this.

justworriedabit

Gavin83 said:

How long have they been married and living together?

The likelihood of him keeping more than 50% of the assets is extremely slim indeed. It's far more likely that he'll end up with less than 50%. I'd tell him to keep his expectations low and that way he'll avoid disappointment. Does he know what she's requesting yet in terms of asset split?

The real question mark is around the gift. A lot will depend on what was drawn up at the time but a solicitor would be better placed to discuss this.

Thanks for your contribution, but as the other poster said, best to wait for the experts. However, as I said and this is why I have posted again, I thank you for your contribution as we can relay to him the possibilities but as you said, aim low, worse case scenario. He has already worked out he wants a clean cut and will aim for that even if it costs him a bit more. About the gift, the parents are astute and when they gifted the money it did state out it was to their son and his property.  We've told him but we understand he wants answers/figures now and with the best will in the world, it is hard to say other than the gift element. Thanks again.

pelirocco

Looking after their child is work , and will continue to be work for many years to come  btw