financial order

Enforcement of Financial Orders

You’ve separated from your partner, you’re going through the steps to become divorced, and you have signed your Consent Order and agreed on the financial settlement and possibly child or spousal maintenance.

What Happens if My Ex Doesn’t Pay Me?

If you find out that your ex-spouse or co-parent has not paid their maintenance, is dragging their feet sending you your part of the divided assets, or still hasn’t sold your joint property, then there are protections in place for you.

Seeking early legal advice from Higgins Miller by speaking to a highly experienced solicitor who is an expert in matters of family law, can save time, energy and expense in the long run.

The best course of action is always to speak to your ex-spouse first (referred to as the judgement debtor) and ask them why payments to you (the judgement creditor) have stopped. There might be a genuine reason, such as financial difficulties or loss of employment, or you may wish to advise them that you will be pursuing this with the court if needs be.

Higgins Miller have been specialising in family law for many years and can provide all the legal support and advice you need, should the case go to court.

Get in Touch

What Do You Do After Issuing a Warning?

After your warning to the debtor, if payments still haven’t been made, we will submit an application to the court on your behalf and use the fact that you have warned them as evidence that they are choosing not to pay you. We will also supply a copy of your application to the judgement debtor to inform them of the court proceedings.

From there, a judge will review your case and determine if there has been any valid reason for the delay in payment/payments, such as delays from the pension provider in cases involving a Pension Sharing Order. If no valid reasons are found, the judge may enforce the payments in a number of ways, depending on your circumstances:

  • An attachment of earnings order; where the court will instruct the judgement debtor’s employer to deduct payments from their salary and pay them directly to the court, who will then provide them to the judgement creditor.
  • A charging order; which is usually used when there is a lump sum outstanding, and which is then levied against the debtor’s property. This unfortunately may lead to more waiting, as the payment will only be received on the sale of the property, although this can also be enforced by a judge, if necessary.
  • The worst case scenario is a prison sentence or a warrant of execution; where the court seizes goods directly from the debtor and either holds these until the creditor is paid or sells the goods to settle the debt.

Breaching a financial order is taken very seriously by the courts, and we will be there to guide you through every step to make sure that your financial settlement agreement is honoured and that all money due to you is paid.

Get in Touch

If you would like to discuss your case with one of our expert solicitors, then we can arrange an initial meeting of up to an hour in our Stockport offices for just £120 + VAT @20% after which we will provide you with a comprehensive written report of our discussion together with our professional advice.

To arrange this fixed fee first appointment please call us at 0161 429 7251 or email [email protected]

Get in Touch

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY ABOUT US

Upon commencing my association with Higgins Miller, I experienced a heightened sense of apprehension and anxiety regarding the impending legal proceedings. Throughout the course of the year, I interacted with several solicitors, each of whom demonstrated exceptional professionalism and dedication. They maintained consistent communication, providing me with regular updates and effectively alleviating my concerns. Ultimately, I emerged victorious in my case, and I am profoundly grateful to Higgins Miller for their invaluable assistance. Without their expertise and support, the outcome could have been drastically different.

Miss B.

I have had the pleasure of having a few dealings with Mark Higgins and him taking care of us. I can’t speak highly enough of Mark. His knowledge and attention to detail is first class.

Mr M.

Very helpful and professional advice resulting in a very satisfactory outcome to my divorce. Highly recommended.

Mr C.

I just wanted to say thank you and express my appreciation for the support you gave me during this very long and stressful period of my life.

I commend your professionalism and communication skills. Though the wait was long and frustrating at times, you took the time to explain things to me and answered my questions with honesty. You were never dismissive nor disrespectful as some previous legal practitioners were since the start of my journey and I appreciated that.

Please never change and from the bottom of my heart, a massive thank you.

Mrs A.

Fantastic, compassionate, easy to work with and Fantastic standard of legal advice! Straight talk, delivered with care and understanding! Highly Recommend

Mrs B.

To top