Do I need a pre-nuptial agreement? [GUEST BLOG]

Marriage comes not only with emotional attachment but also financial implications, and it is important to consider these before tying the knot. A pre-nuptial agreement is one way of making sure that the finances and assets of both you and your partner are accounted for before you enter into a marriage.

By entering into a pre-nuptial agreement, both you and your partner can take comfort that, in the unfortunate event of a separation following marriage, the pre-nuptial agreement will act to prevent costly, time-consuming and emotionally draining disputes over the division of both yours and your partner’s finances and assets.

What is a Pre-Nuptial Agreement?

A Contract entered into before marriage which seeks to:

• Define the parties’ respective property rights during the course of the marriage
• Set out the assets of the parties and predetermine how they would be divided in the unfortunate event of a divorce
• The Contract may cover assets acquired both before and during the marriage.

Is a Pre-Nuptial Agreement enforceable on the dissolution of a marriage?

Pre-nuptial agreements, although not strictly enforceable in England and Wales, do act as a very persuasive factor when the Court is deciding on the division of assets upon divorce.

Why enter into a Pre-Nuptial Agreement?

• To protect and preserve assets if your marriage subsequently breaks down and to avoid costly
litigation
• Couples marrying for a second time may want topreserve their assets, possibly for their children from an earlier marriage
• Couples marrying for the first time, seeking to limit the impact of divorce on “family” assets arising from inheritance or gift or possibly various family trusts
• Wherever there is a disparity of assets between a couple intending to marry.

What does a Pre-Nuptial Agreement seek to do?

A Pre-Nuptial Agreement typically defines the separate and joint assets of spouses and sets out how those respective assets will divided in the event of divorce.

A Pre-nuptial agreement is a way of achieving fairness in the distribution of a couple’s individual and joint assets in the event of a divorce following marriage.

What should be considered when thinking about a Pre-Nuptial Agreement?

• The agreement must be entered into by both parties of their own free will and without undue pressure or influence
• The parties must be aware of the implications of entering into a Pre-Nuptial Agreement
• Full disclosure of each party’s finances must be provided
• Each party should obtain independent legal advice as to the effects and implications of the Agreement
• The Agreement must not be deemed to be unfair
• The terms of the Agreement cannot be allowed
adversely to affect the circumstances of a child
• The Agreement should not be entered into less than 28 days prior to the wedding.

Should all people marrying have a Pre-Nuptial Agreement?

Although it is not a legal requirement to enter into a Pre-Nuptial agreement before marriage, increasing numbers of couples are turning to such agreements to financially safeguard their respective and joint assets.

We always encourage couples to at least consider entering into a Pre-Nuptial agreement before they enter into marriage.


Blaser Mills’ Family & Divorce team are highly experienced solicitors who can advise you on your respective rights and obligations. Should you require further information on this matter, or any other advice concerning family or divorce matters, we are happy to discuss your options with you over the telephone at no charge.

Please call 020 3814 2020 or alternatively, email us on: family@blasermills.co.uk to arrange an initial conversation.

Do I need a post-nuptial agreement? [GUEST BLOG]

Marriage comes not only with emotional attachment but also financial implications, and it is important to consider these when embarking on marriage. A post-nuptial agreement is one way of making sure that the finances and assets of both you and your partner are accounted for once you have entered into a marriage.

What is a Post-Nuptial Agreement?

Couples who are already married can enter into an Agreement that defines what will happen to their finances and assets if the marriage breaks down.
A post-nuptial agreement can act to prevent costly, time-consuming and emotionally draining disputes over the division of both parties’ finances and assets in the unfortunate event of marriage separation.

Are Post-Nuptial Agreements binding in Court?

Although upon divorce Post-Nuptial Agreements are not strictly binding, it has become increasingly common that Post-Nuptial Agreements are taken into consideration when the Court is deciding how the separating couple’s assets and finances should be divided. In order to ensure that the Agreement is as persuasive as possible to the Court, both parties will need to set out their respective financial circumstances in full and take independent legal advice on the Agreement and its effects.

Agreements are more likely to be considered if they are recent, or if the circumstances of both parties have not changed since the agreement, and if both parties knew exactly what they were getting into when the Agreement was made.

What can a Post-Nuptial Agreement cover?

Post-Nuptial Agreements are very individual to the couples concerned but the kind of things that they can cover include:

• What would happen to the family home or any
property that party brought into the marriage
• What would happen to any property given or
inherited to party during the marriage
• What would happen to money held in joint accounts and any property purchased jointly
• What would happen to pensions
• How would debts be dealt with
• Whether either party would receive any maintenance and, if so, for how long
• Any arrangements made for current children or children in the future, both in financial and
in practical terms.

What happens if the parties have children AFTER the Agreement?

A Post-Nuptial Agreement cannot prejudice the interests of any children in the family. It is common to stipulate that the Agreement is reviewed if and when children are born into the marriage so that the children’s needs can be considered and assessed.

The agreement can then be amended accordingly, taking into account the expectations of both parties.

If the Court is asked to intervene in financial arrangements in the event of a divorce, any children concerned are always taken as the first consideration.

If the Court considers that a Post-Nuptial Agreement may adversely affect the children, the agreement is likely to be disregarded by the Court.


Blaser Mills’ Family & Divorce team are highly experienced solicitors who can advise you on your respective rights and obligations. Should you require further information on this matter, or any other advice concerning family or divorce matters, we are happy to discuss your options with you over
the telephone at no charge.

Please call 020 3814 2020 or alternatively, email us on: family@blasermills.co.uk to arrange an initial conversation.

Do I need a no-nup? [GUEST BLOG]

More and more couples are choosing not to marry. Instead, many opt for cohabitation. This can be for many reasons and choosing to cohabit is typically a life choice. However, it also has legal implications, especially when buying property together or having children. The laws for non-married cohabiting partners are not the same as those for married couples. Litigation upon separation can be costly, time-consuming and emotionally draining. No-Nups can be a way in which to minimise disputes between couples upon separation.

So what are No-Nups?

A No-Nup is more traditionally known as a Cohabitation Agreement. In short, these agreements set out who owns what and in what proportion. It lets you document how you will provide for your children and how you will split your property, its contents, personal belongings and other assets should the relationship break down.
The agreement can also be used to clarify how cohabiting couples will manage their day-to-day finances.

When should non-married couples consider a No-Nup?

If you are buying property together or live in a property owned by one of you...
The family home is often the main and most valuable asset of the relationship. A couple should give careful consideration to whether they wish to purchase the home as “joint tenants”, as “tenants in common” or in one party’s sole name.

As “joint tenants”, upon separation, each person takes half of the equity in the home and if one of them dies, the survivor inherits the whole property. This is the preferred route where equal contributions are being made to the purchase and any mortgage repayments.

As “tenants in common”, the property is held jointly but as separate shares so that if one party passes away, their share will pass according to their Will and will not automatically be inherited by the other person. This would be the typical route where one party makes a greater contribution to the property. Where there are unequal contributions, it is also prudent to set out the division of the equity in a ‘declaration of trust’ agreement.

Where ownership of family property is in the sole name of one spouse, it is usually a sensible precaution to enter a written agreement to define and secure the financial interest of the non-owner who otherwise could be entitled to nothing.

If you have children…

Depending on the circumstances, one parent may be able to claim maintenance, a lump sum or property rights against the other, on behalf of a child.

The parent who is not living with the child (the non-resident parent) may be required to pay child support via the Child Maintenance Service unless maintenance can be agreed. A No-Nup can be utilised to record the parties’ financial obligations and intentions towards children of the relationship upon breakdown.

If you hold pensions…

Occupational pension schemes often do not recognise partners who live together and may only allow a survivor’s pension to be paid to a surviving unmarried partner if the survivor was financially dependent on the pension scheme member.

Cohabiting partners have no rights under the state pension system. A specific nomination of the other party may be required to benefit from the private/ occupational policy.

In the absence of a No-Nup, litigation to resolve these issues can cost upwards of £10,000. No-Nups typically cost considerably less and litigation can be avoided.


Blaser Mills’ Family & Divorce team are highly experienced solicitors who can advise you on your respective rights and obligations. Should you require further information on this matter, or any other advice concerning family or divorce matters, we are happy to discuss your options with you over the telephone at no charge.

Please call 020 3814 2020 or alternatively, email us on family@blasermills.co.uk to arrange
a conversation.

Why Do I Need a Financial Adviser?

Today, you will have access to more investment information than ever before. Not necessarily jargon free, might I add. I guess it can never be jargon free, as we as a specie create words to deal with different complexities. Of course there are some useless words, which I won’t mention here, but essentially we do need to upskill the public in understanding more of the financial and investment vocabulary.

I do however, like the consumer directed Money Advice Service website which can be accessed here (https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en) which provides a basic level of information and guidance to the public.

These days, technology has allowed the investor to enjoy great perks, such as being able to buy or sell securities at low cost, diversify on mutual funds and exchange-traded funds in a variety of markets, and take advantage of more online tools and articles than you will likely need. I do strongly think DIY investing without a strategy is nothing other than gambling!

Anyway, you still may think due to the plethora of information out there you wouldn’t need a financial adviser, but I think the world has become a lot more complicated and so here are 4 reasons why you should have an adviser by your side in the area of your wealth management:

ü  They can help you determine if you are saving enough money.

By the time you hit the better part of 55, retirement will become your main focus as you realise that you only have a few years before you stop working. This will obviously have an impact on your expected standard of living. You are unlikely to have much information on your expected retirement income and how long it's likely to last you as we live longer due to better diet and medical care.

A financial adviser can be crucial in determining how much you need to put away each month to reach your retirement income goals and particularly when advising you on the best way to extract those funds tax efficiently.

ü  They can help you know how much exactly you should pay for your investments.

The cost of your investment is crucial. It can be more important than the investment returns itself as it needn’t matter what the investment returns are if a significant chunk of it is being wiped out in fees. There are lots of costly old investment and pension policies that need to be reviewed. You may have one of them. You also need to factor in the service you get with your annual overall management costs, sometimes a higher fee is definitely worth it, but too many a time…it isn’t! As a rule if you are paying more than 2.2% per annum in costs, get a review.

  

ü  They can help you identify ways to become more tax efficient

This applies to individual investors and particularly businesses with surplus cash holdings. A financial adviser can provide regulated advice which will allow those interested in investing in quality smaller companies to invest directly in order to achieve potentially higher levels of growth that small companies may enjoy. This would most certainly be classed as a higher risk investment but potential losses mitigated by benefiting from things like immediate tax relief of upto 50% on an investment of £100,000 which in turn has only really costed £50,000, whilst also benefiting from tax free growth and tax free dividends.

They can also advise you on how to mitigate the effects of inheritance tax using similar investments for tax planning.

  

ü  They can create a good strategy for down markets.

Do you remember the tech and the housing bubbles of 2000 and 2008? You only really lost if your entire investment stock was obliterated due to all the 'companies it owned' essentially going bankrupt, defaulted or you as the investor panicked and divested.

If you do not need the money in poor market conditions, provided the fund or funds you are in is open for business i.e. allowing investors to continue to invest, and the fund management team is credible in identifying new investment opportunities HOLD FIRE, the market will pick up!

While we have learnt more about diversification, small time or part investors who prefer to go it alone carry the greatest risk as they do not have access to the research resources of professional managers, and typically they only look at past performance to build an investment portfolio. This is wrong, plain wrong, just wrong, wrong, wrong!

Why? To give one example asset classes can correlate one another, so DIY investors could be investing, paying higher fees for one stock unnecessarily, as having invested in another cheaper stock which would have moved in the same direction as the more expensive one. 

A good adviser should ascertain your attitude to risk, look at your capacity to take risk, your need for that level risk before advising on how and where to invest. As an investor you benefit from lower management fees due to the fact that you are sharing your costs with many other investors.

You adviser should have an ongoing relationship with you where they advise you throughout your life as you enter into different income zones thus having evolving needs from saving for a house deposit, investing for school fees, that expensive holiday, structuring your business, extracting profits and putting money aside for retirement. 

With more specialist advisers they can protect your wealth post-death by keeping it within your bloodline, or even from having it whittled away by unruly children! 

If you'd like to have a friendly conversation about your affairs - no time limit and no charge, send a request through via the 'Post Me Your Problem' enquiry box above and a regulated, friendly financial adviser will get in touch usually within 24-48 hours.

Do I need to go to court regarding the arrangements for my children? [GUEST BLOG]

When a relationship breaks down, typically the parties’ main concern will be the arrangements for their children. Questions such as “How will the Court decide who the children will live with?” and “What are the children and I entitled to financially?” commonly arise.

It is important to note that the same issues and potential areas for dispute arise whether parents are married or unmarried. Parents are encouraged to mediate in order to resolve issues and court action should only be considered if no agreement can be reached.

On separation, typical disputes relating to children tend to focus on who the children will live with and how much time they will spend with the other parent. Terminology such as ‘custody’ and ‘access’, or ‘residence’ and ‘contact’ have been phased out in favour of labels which suggest that there is no controlling parent and that there is no ‘winner’or ‘loser’.

Instead, the law now makes provision for Child Arrangements Orders and there is a new presumption which states that both parents should be spending time with their children. The presumption does not say how much time or in what form but it is as close to suggesting a presumption of a shared care regime as children law has ever come.

What rights do I have in respect of my children?

Parental Responsibility (“PR”) was introduced by the Children Act 1989 and provided a deliberate shift towards the idea that parents have responsibilities to their children. In summary, PR gives you the right to make decisions regarding all of the important aspects of your child’s life such as medical, education and religious matters.

Mothers automatically acquire PR for their children as do Fathers who are married to their children’s mother. Unmarried fathers do not automatically acquire PR for their children. However, from 1.12.03 onwards, if the unmarried father is named on his child’s birth certificate, he automatically acquires PR. There are also other ways in which an unmarried father can obtain PR.

What types of Orders can the Court make?

The Court has the power to make various orders in relation to a child which will last until the child is 16 years old (18 in exceptional circumstances):

Child Arrangement Orders – setting out who the child will live and the frequency of time spent with each parent.

Prohibited Steps Orders – which prevent a person from acting in a certain way, such as removing the child from the jurisdiction of England and Wales.

Specific Issue Orders –giving decisions on specific issues relating to any aspect of parental responsibility for a child, such as where they will be educated.

What is the Court required to consider when making Orders?

The welfare of the child is of utmost importance to the court. Any questions the court has surrounding a child and their upbringing must adhere to the Welfare Checklist as follows:

• The wishes and feelings of the child concerned (considered in light of their age and understanding)
• The child’s physical, emotional and/or educational needs
• The likely effect of any change in circumstances on the child
• The child’s age, sex, background and any characteristics that the court considers relevant
• Any harm which the child has suffered or is at risk of suffering
• How capable each parent and any other person in relation to who the court considers to be relevant,
is of meeting the child’s needs
• The range of powers available to the court.

Blaser Mills’ Family & Divorce team are highly experienced solicitors who can advise you on your respective rights and obligations. Should you require further information on this matter, or any other advice concerning family or divorce matters, we are happy to discuss your options with you over the telephone at no charge.

Please call 020 3814 2020 or alternatively, email us on family@blasermills.co.uk to arrange a conversation.

Do I need legal advice on the financial aspect of my relationship breakdown? [GUEST BLOG]

A relationship breakdown is rarely straightforward.

Not only will you have to deal with the emotional side of the breakdown, you will also have to address the financial issues. With the benefit of expert and impartial advice on approaching this difficult period in your life, you can ensure that your wealth and assets are preserved and protected as best they can.

In the process of a divorce or dissolution, the Court will consider all assets available to you and the other party. This involves a full and frank financial disclosure of both parties’ current financial positions. The Court will then seek to redistribute the assets, taking into consideration the parties’ needs and resources, and the reasonable needs of you and the other party, while prioritising the needs of any children.

Typical factors considered include:
• The standard of living enjoyed by both parties
whilst you were together
• The parties’ ages
• The length of the marriage
• Any disabilities
• Contributions to the family
• Any financial misconduct or conduct it would be
inequitable to disregard
• Any potential future financial loss.

When making their decision, the Court has the power to make a range of orders that can have severe consequences on your wealth and assets.

These include:
• Property adjustment Orders (such as Orders for sale
or an Order for transfer of a property from one party
to the other)
• A lump sum payment
• Pension adjustment
• Spousal maintenance (money to be paid from one
spouse to the other on set terms).

A divorce or dissolution is therefore more complex than it might seem particularly when there is considerable wealth, assets and/or children involved.

Do I need to go to Court to achieve a financial settlement?

Going to Court is an option available to both parties if an agreement cannot be reached. However, the parties will be encouraged to take steps to Mediate and negotiate their terms of financial settlement in order to avoid Court proceedings. Court proceedings may be required if, for example, one party is failing to co-operate with the negotiation process or has been unwilling to make full and frank financial disclosure.

Will the home where we have been living have to be sold?

Whether a sale or transfer of the home will form part of a settlement is usually assessed once the parties have achieved full and frank disclosure. The terms of the financial settlement have to ensure that the parties can leave the relationship with separate and suitable accommodation.

What will become of my existing pension should I separate from or divorce my partner?

It is likely that your pension will be a relevant part of the matrimonial finances to be settled. The Court has wide powers upon divorce /dissolution to make financial adjustment orders including power to apportion a pension between the parties.

What happens if I inherit or I am likely to inherit a property or other assets?

This has been the subject of much review by the
Court and the ultimate position will depend on many factors. In some situations upon divorce, the Court may ring-fence the inheritance away from the overall asset base which is being divided between the parties. This is not a clear-cut process and the parties’ needs and resources will affect the Court’s decision.

There are many factors to consider when advising clients on divorce and associated financial matters.


Blaser Mills’ Family & Divorce team are highly experienced solicitors who can advise you on your respective rights and obligations. Should you require further information on this matter, or any other advice concerning family or divorce matters, we are happy to discuss your options with you over the telephone at no charge.

Please call 020 3814 2020 or alternatively, email us on: family@blasermills.co.uk to arrange an initial conversation.

Case Study 3: Should I move my pension? (In a nutshell response)

I had this query the other day and I thought I’d share my somewhat long verbal response which went something like this.

In terms of investment management performance it’s likely to be similar across the board for most people provided you are invested in line with your attitude to risk. However, most certainly different investment managers tailor their approach to mitigate volatility to try and achieve a smooth level of return.

But the fact is the market goes up and down and that for the large part is outside of the fund manager's control, but how much it goes up and down and how frequently is something that your fund management strategy can dictate to a degree. The argument then goes into whether one should have a passive fund management style where your investments simply mirror an index such as the FTSE 100 let’s say.

On the other hand, you may believe that an active manager who is actively involved in the day to day running of your investments can somehow ‘beat the market’. Well placed academic research states that this cannot be done consistently. However, what is important is not having a single management style be it within a passive approach or an active approach. I personally advocate a blend of active approaches because generally speaking active managers can respond quicker to market down turns.

Also, know that most fund performance is largely determined by the allocation of assets within the fund i.e. what proportion of commercial property, cash, equities, commodities, government and corporate bonds are within your fund and less so about any one stock.

Now, most fund managers, have the capacity to do the necessary level of research relevant for most of the public and it’s never wise to transfer based merely on past performance, as there is no guarantee for the future. So what you need to ask yourself is the following:

1. Is your provider reviewing your financial context and ambitions at least annually? Don’t underestimate this, having a good adviser on hand, when you want to do something as simple as save for your children’s school fees or if you wanted to start a new business, invest in buy-to-let properties, or even split from the dear or not so dear wife/husband (hope that never happens obviously), a financial adviser will be crucial to plan everything tax efficiently and you’ll have far less heartache in the long run.

Oh yes, one more thing, if you are approaching retirement and you are looking to withdraw monies from your pension. Get advice! I cannot stress this enough as due to changes in pension legislation you need to be able to maximise your gains tax efficiently.

2. What fees are they charging for those reviews and for investment management? To be honest anything more than 2% should warrant a review of your investment and your relationship with your current adviser. Also bear in mind this fee may include an on-going service charge, but if the provider has not provided that service, you could claim this portion back!

3. What technology is in place to support your investment goals and your overall financial well-being? Most people start to put money aside and completely forget about it. This is wrong. You should be involved and aware of how achievable your goals are and be able to be act quickly if you are short of your goals or want to achieve your goals a little quicker. Usually providers do not have the infrastructure or reliable technology to do this properly, but there are a few decent providers out there.

It is good that we consider the cost of our investments when we do, but we should also consider the cost of not being able to do something too, which is essentially the missed opportunity cost. So we don’t say….’if only I was I able to invest quickly when the markets were down'...'if only I could have invested this extra £10 I had this month without needing to hassle my adviser or stay on hold for 10 mins trying to get through to my provider'. 

Hope that helps!