High Net Worth Couples Solicitors Ireland

You will need to give full disclosure of your finances to your spouse, as will they to you, irrespective of which family law avenue you take to resolve matters.

Even if one party feels this is unfair or unduly cumbersome or expensive, full and frank disclosure is required for each party to make an informed agreement and in turn a valid and legally enforceable agreement.

An agreement made without full disclosure could be ultimately set aside if challenged which ultimately serves neither party well.

Yes, various types of Pension Adjustment Orders can be made, ranging from nil order to the pension being split or a portion earmarked. 

Pensions are complex assets more information regarding pensions is available on the topic of pensions here. An alternative solution can be to leave the parties’ pensions alone but to change the way other assets are shared out on division.

Property contributions can require detailed assessment, as contributions can be direct (i.e. the person who made the monetary payment directly), and contributions can be indirect (support may have been given in others ways, such as by acting as co-borrower, or contributing indirectly to enable the other party finance a transaction).

Family law is not determined by reference to a set rule book, it provides for a set of broad principles which the Court interpret and apply to a given situation.  There is for example no rule setting out a 50/50 division of assets, although many assume that there is such a provision at law.  This is why expert legal advice from a specialist family lawyer specific to your individual situation is critical at an early stage to identify likely outcomes and possible solutions.

An application can be made to a Court to freeze certain assets pending the outcome of the hearing of a family law case if they are at risk of being dissipated or put beyond reach. This is an injunctive relief and tends to be an urgent application brought to protect against assets being reduced in the context of a marital dispute for example being put outside of Ireland, the jurisdiction of the proceedings, or being transferred to a third party.

The purpose of this type of relief is to ensure assets are not put beyond the reach of the Court when the time comes for the Court to make determinations. The formal name of such a remedy is a mareva injunction. Such an injunction can be applied against third parties, such as the bank where an account with savings that are at risk are maintained. The expert family law team at Carmody Moran Solicitors have experience of bringing such applications and for specific advice to your situation, please contact us to discuss your case.

While there has been attitude towards moving away from spousal maintenance towards endeavouring to maintain the parties independently, spousal maintenance is very much a remedy open to the Court and under Irish law, there is no clean break from the obligation to support one’s spouse or civil partner and children.

Spouses and civil partners are required to financially support each other. Maintenance is a regular payment although the Court can also make lump sum orders or periodic payment orders as part of a separation or divorce to achieve financial support obligations, as such whether or not you will pay spousal maintenance is a matter of assessment in each individual case.

In Ireland, unlike in some other jurisdictions, there is no legal formula for calculating maintenance; it is up to the parties to either reach direct agreement regarding the payment or, for the Court to decide what maintenance should be awarded. The Court will consider the income, earning capacity, property and other financial resources of both parties. It will also consider whether either party has other financial responsibilities such as a spouse or other dependent children.

Maintenance for children, is separate to spousal maintenance. There is a legal responsibility on all parents, married or unmarried, to maintain dependent children (i.e. to the age of 18 or 23 if in full time education) in accordance with their means. Maintenance can be paid periodically (i.e., weekly, fortnightly or monthly) or by way of lump sum / financial compensation.

Items such as school fees, gaeltacht fees, music, sport, and other extra curricular items can be agreed as period payments as part of maintenance, or to be split or apportioned between the parties.

It may be necessary to involve a forensic accountant in your case if there are important actuarial calculation or comparision reports required, or if there is work to be done to trace assets through various accounts and review gaps and ommissions. This will depend upon the nature of your case.

There is no hard rule book that provides for a 50/50 division of assets in family law such as a business or investment property. Each case and asset will be reviewed individually and the applicable legal principles reviewed as to what is the likely outcome. Where there is a family business it will be in everyone’s interests that it remains financially viable not be divided where possible and practical solutions with pragmatic advice will be key to an outcome that is workable for everyone.