Can anyone give me some advise?

[madcatladyforever]

Hi everyone, I just wondered if anyone could give me some advise to help my son out.
My son and his girlfriend who I call my DiL as they have been together for years want to buy a house together within the next few months.
The trouble is she is still married to her husband but they have not lived together for 10 years. He is disabled now and neither of them could afford a divorce.
I am concerned that if she buys a house with my son her ex could claim some of it when the divorce actually happens.
Can he claim anything after all this time?
Would a legal separation stop any claims?
With the state of the family courts down here the actuall divorce will take ages. My own divorce took 2 and a half years despite being completely uncontested as the courts are so busy and don't have enough staff.
I want to make sure they are safe to buy a place now without losing it to the ex later on.
Would be very grateful for any advice.

[millymollymoomoo]

She needs to get the divorce sorted out

I would not purchase a house until she does

[Singlenotsingle]

It's unlikely, but not beyond the bounds of possibility.

They could buy the house in DS's sole name and then transfer it into their joint names after the divorce has gone through.

[m0vinf0rward]

Yep as they are legally married, your son should not buy property with this woman. The legality of ownership could be messy and at a minimum will cause expense and stress to sort out. Best avoided.

[LemonTT]

How can she buy a house but not pay for a divorce. Assuming it’s not contested and there is no need to agree a financial settlement it should be straight forward and relatively cheap. They should try wikivorce.

But if it isn’t straightforward and the financial settlement is complex then your son is potentially making a big mistake.

[BlueDotty]

I managed our divorce without solicitors and it only cost £400 court fees. I appreciate this isn't always possible and some people do need solicitors, but it might not be as expensive as she thinks it will be.

I'm sorry, I don't know anything about future claim on the property.

[IggyPoppers]

She needs to get divorced first or half will be his. If she has the money for a house she has the money for a divorce.

[NotBeingRobbed]

She should be divorced first or the ex will have a claim on the house. And advise your DS NOT to marry!

[GreenTulips]

She can get divorced spending £100 and waiting 6 weeks

As they haven’t been together for 10 years I’m assuming there’s no finances to sort or children

Look online

[madcatladyforever]

No no finances and no children.

They thought about putting everything in my sons name until the divorce comes through but her dad won't agree to that as they are getting the deposit partially from him and partially from their own joint savings.

They are coming to live with me for 6 months I will insist she gets divorced while they are here.

Thanks for all the advice folks.

[anniehm]

It's possible to file for divorce using an online service rather than solicitors - as long as it's amicable and over 2 years it's court fees plus £39. I think the court fees are around £1000 because I'm helping a friend in a sort of similar situation who cannot really afford the cost of divorce

[NotBeingRobbed]

If her dad is putting in money she can’t afford not to divorce! Or the ex will have a claim on that too.

[Purplejay]

If her ex isn’t working he may be abke to get financial help If he submits the divorce petition. Not 100% sure but worth looking into.

Aside, I am not sure you can ‘insist’ she get divorced as they are grown ups. It certainly seems advisable though.