Does anyone know what I wd be entitled to if I split with H?

[BeenLiedToB4]

Considering leaving a problematic marriage, but tricky because still completing some professional training which means I can't immediately support myself and DS.

Married 6 years, lived together with joint finances 7 years. H is quite a high earner and his salary has gone up gradually over the years. We own a house. Since we bought it I have been either in training (1.5 years before DS and 6 months since he started nursery) or at home with DS (for 1 year). I have always worked part-time during training but the income is negligible (not even enough to be taxable).

However, up until just under 3 years ago I was making a reasonable income, though still very modest in comparison to H - different sector, different payscales. Over the 3 years before we bought the house, we lived on H's income day to day and the vast majority of my income went into saving for the deposit on the house. H also contributed to this deposit.

I'm a hoarder with paper work so I expect I can dig up evidence of all this.

I will take DS with me when I leave and expect H would have him every other weekend or the like.

I had assumed I would have to give the house up to H and most of our savings, since he has always made the lion's share of the financial contributions and I was only a SAHM for 1 year; for 2yrs outside of that he has been supporting me to train for my career.

Does anyone with a bit of legal knowledge and/or experience know if I'm right to assume this? I'm not interested in taking him to the cleaners, but others have questioned whether it's reasonable to walk away with nothing when I have a child to care for. I know that we'll be entitled to some basic weekly maintenance payments. Would it be reasonable to walk away with a small share of our joint assets in order to enable me to provide a reasonable standard of living for DS?

Thanks in advance.

[prh47bridge]

You are entitled to a fair share of the assets. The fact that he has been the main earner does not necessarily mean he will get most of the assets.

You need to consult a solicitor who specialises in family law. Many will give an initial consultation free of charge. When they have all the details they will be able to give you a much better idea of the likely outcome than you will get here. I would recommend using someone who is a member of Resolution - you can find them here.

[BeenLiedToB4]

Thanks bridge. Hard to know what 'fair' is; will follow up the link and book a consultation.

[sneezecakesmum]

Absolutely get legal advice before you make any move.

It would I think be regarded as fair for you to stay in the family home with your DC if you have the main care of him and you do not have the option to have suitable housing from the equity from a sale. Definitely stay put until you have talked this over with a solicitor.

Try to stay civil throughout the divorce and look for compromises to suit all your needs. If you are tempted to 'take him to the cleaners' it can get very messy, but you certainly should not be short changed because of Hs high earnings and your periods of study, you contributed equally in the build up of assets, even if not in purely financial ways.

[STIDW]

Sharing assets fairly means dividing assets in a way that complies with s25 Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 and other law. It isn't possible to understand the law by just reading it which is why it is a good idea to see a solicitor early on. Finding out where you stand and what options there are in the particular circumstances enables you to negotiate from an informed position.