spousal maintenance

[ChickOnaMission]

Originally posted in divorce section but might be better off here...

I’m separating from my husband of 10 years and want to find out what my rights are with regards to spousal maintenance & child maintenance,

We have two children 2 & 8 – when we met I did not have a well paid job. I went back to work when my daughter was 2 and got a job in finance which I did for two years. I left this job in order to spend more time with the my daughter & have another baby. I worked part time. Had I stayed in the finance job I would have undoubtedly been on a good salary by now – at least £40,000 and probably much more. When I quit my job my husband set up his own company which has done ok- the last year has been tough – his take home income last year was £60k. It will most likely be considerably more this year. I’ve just gone back to work in finance but had to start right at the bottom again - my salary is £22k.

We’ve got no house, no assets at all. And he does owe about £12k to HMRC. He’s terrible with money, he earns lots but wastes it , runs up utility bills and doesn’t pay anything on time. I’m worried he’ll try to hide his money overseas, his business is international

I don’t want to have to go to a solicitor and incur legal costs I want to get an idea of what is considered fair for him to give us. I feel that he should contribute something for me as I gave up my career prospects to look after the kids, and support him while he set up his own business.

Can anyone advise me how to approach this with him, how much of his income he should give us and prove that it is what the courts would award me.

[Lonecatwithkitten]

I'm sorry to say that I think you are going to need legal advice as there is no normal each case is very different.

[Portofino]

I believe that if you have no assets, you will get the recommended CSA payment and possibly a share of his pension.

[RedHelenB]

Being self employed makes it much easier to "massage " figures so unless he is willing to pay spousal & child maintenance you may well end up with less than you think fair, even if you did go to court. Have you spoken to him about finances, that would be a good starting point if you want to avoid solicitors for the time being.

[PatriciaHolm]

Definitely get legal advice. The standard would be a split of assets (including pensions) then the CSA calculation for child maintenance (20% of net income for 2 children). Spousal maintenance is far less normal, and normally happens where household income is very high; you won't find a templated guide to what you would expect from court as it will vary widely (and most people's experience will be that spousal isn't awarded). The expectation will be that you return to work.

[STIDW]

Every case depends on the specific details and you really need legal advice to find out where you stand and what options there are in your circumstances even if you then decide to negotiate an agreement between yourselves.

Spouse maintenance depends on the need of the recipient and the ability to pay of payer. There is also an element of sharing. The priority is the welfare of any dependent children, in particular meeting your need to provide housing.

A good starting point is to check out what state help you are entitled to at www.entitled.co.uk and to consider how everyone is to be rehoused.