Solicitors Specialising in Police Divorce
Our Police Divorce team can help you wherever you are based
Do you need specialist legal advice on your divorce? Are you worried about losing your police pension?
Many family lawyers don’t fully understand police pensions – this is critical as these lawyers often rely on the wrong pension valuation. Your police pension may be your biggest asset. And getting the right pension valuation is critical, especially given that there are (as at 2021) 3 different potential Police Pension Scheme that could apply to you – the 1987, 2006 or 2015 Schemes.
So, if you’re thinking about divorce, our specialists can help you get the right pension valuation. And making sure you have the right valuation of a police pension can make a huge difference.
Click here to read more about divorce and family finances – including the treatment of pensions
Relationship problems? Let our lawyers put your mind at rest. Here at Bonallack & Bishop, that first phone call, and your first 30 minute appointment, are both FREE. Call us on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 or Email Us Now
Your divorce – how our solicitors can help
Whatever your Police Divorce or family law issue, we are here to provide the specialist advice you need – our team cover the full range of family law issues ranging from divorce and children issues to civil partnerships and family mediation. What’s more, the head of our family team is a serving District Judge, who regularly rules on divorce. That means you can guarantee our team are always bang up-to-date with the latest judicial attitudes towards divorce and family breakup.
We represent both serving and retired police personnel both locally in Wiltshire, Hampshire, Dorset and Somerset – and throughout England and Wales – from our offices in Salisbury, Andover, Fordingbridge and Amesbury.
Click here to read more about getting a divorce
Divorce Update 2022 – the UK government introduced so-called “no-fault divorce” in April 2022.
Click here to read more about our £500 Fixed Fee Divorce Service – but please note this fixed price service applies only to the divorce, and does not include advice on children financial issues and excludes the court fee.
FREE Specialist Advice for Police Divorce
Our Police Divorce team offer no strings attached FREE 30 minutes legal advice and FREE initial advice, face-to-face, on the phone or using Zoom Video.
So if you’re worried about relationship breakup, we can help you put your mind at rest without the risk of a huge legal bill.
Why choose us for your Police Divorce?
- Our 4 family lawyers have a proven track record in resolving family law problems for serving and retired police personnel like you
- Our team are specialists – unlike many other lawyers, they only help divorce and family law clients and have particular experience of how to deal with police pensions. The team includes a specially trained Collaborative Lawyer
- We offer a 10% discount to all serving and retired police officers and personnel
- You will benefit from FREE initial phone advice and a FREE 30 minute appointment
- You choose how you want to communicate with us, wherever you live in England and Wales – in personal meetings, using Zoom video, or by e-mail and phone
- Click here to read some reviews of our family lawyers from satisfied clients
Our team’s approach to police divorce and family law
Here at Bonallack & Bishop, we are all strong supporters of avoiding unnecessary confrontation when conducting family law work. While we will always try to get the best deal for you, we look upon relationship breakdown as a problem seeking a solution rather than a battle to be won – especially when there are children involved.
We always see if we can if reach a fair agreement for our clients without having to incur the considerable legal cost and uncertainty of a formal application to court – often by using family mediation. However, if this sort of approach simply won’t work in your case [and, sadly, it doesn’t suit everyone] rest assured we will do everything we can to get a fair solution for you as swiftly as possible. And if, sadly, the other side won’t agree to settle settlement, and that means having to argue really forcefully on your behalf – that’s what we’ll do
Click here to read more about how family mediation could help you
How our family lawyers can help you
Our team deal regularly with a wide variety of issues relating to relationship breakdown, including;
o divorce or civil partnership dissolution.
Click here to read more about how our Divorce Solicitors can help you
o domestic violence
o financial issues arising out of divorce– including pension entitlement
o children issues including residence and contact.
o child maintenance
o grandparents rights regarding their grandchildren
o joint property ownership disputes – often arising after a cohabiting couple split up
o foreign divorce and child abduction
o prenuptial agreements and postnuptial agreements
FAQ’s
How is police pension split in divorce?
The way a police pension is split in divorce will depend on several factors, including:
· The value of other available assets
· The value of the pension
· The needs of the parties
Your solicitor will obtain a cash equivalent transfer value (the referred to as the CETV), which is effectively the value of the pension scheme at that time. A specialist pensions actuary with experience of police pensions will calculate the percentage pension share based upon agreed assumptions, often around length of service , length of relationship and the ages for retirement.
In some circumstances, it may not be necessary to split a police pension. For example, the other party could have a larger share of other assets instead, such as the shared home.
If a police pension share is required, the court will make a pension sharing order. A pension debit will then be recorded against the pension, and a pension credit created for the spouse who is taking a share of the pension.
The person who receives the pension credit will have their own separate pension, which will not be affected by any choices the original pension holder makes when they retire.
Pension sharing is complex and instructing a solicitor who understand , police and other uniform pension schemes is something to consider.
Am I entitled to my ex partner’s police pension?
When you divorce, you are not necessarily entitled to your ex partner’s police pension, but you may receive a share of it in some circumstances.
If we ask the court to deal with your finances, it will look at the available assets and decide whether to split the pension. It will take several criteria into account, including:
• The size of the pension fund
• Whether the pension was accumulated during the marriage
• The length of the marriage
• What other assets are available
• The needs of each party
• What it believes to be fair and equitable in the circumstances
It is often the case that a pension is shared in divorce, particularly if one party has no pension or an inadequate pension provision.
If you need to know whether you are likely to be entitled to an ex-partner’s police pension, speak to one of our expert police divorce lawyers and we can give you the advice you need.
Can my ex-wife claim my pension if I remarry in the UK?
If a financial order is made when you divorce, it will set out whether your ex-wife is entitled to your pension.
If you do not have a financial order, your ex-wife can make a financial claim against you in the future, even if you remarry. This claim can include a share of your pension.
When the courts look at how to split assets on divorce, they will consider your circumstances and those of your ex. They will prioritise the interests of any children. After that, the courts will aim to fairly divide assets. This could include awarding your ex-wife a share of your pension.
It is essential to obtain a financial order when you divorce if you wish to avoid having a financial claim made against you in the future. Without this, you could face a claim even after many years.
