Clean break and absolute

[Samson12]

I can apply for my absolute now. But ex is also wanting clean break. Am I at any disadvantage in doing the absolute first?

Not sure I understand this question. There is no such things as a “clean break” document. Do you mean you want a Consent Order sealed (which may detail your financial agreement that means you will have a clean break financially.
If you do mean a consent order it is much much better to get this sealed at SAME time as absolute ( now called final in new law). Mine was submitted after decree Nisi, (you can’t do it before Nisi), and I’d already flagged to the courts on my original potion that I wanted a financial agreement to be sealed by the courts (eg the consent order). I think, if I remember, you can get a consent order sealed post absolute, but you literally have no leveredge to get this done in an effective and efficient way and the courts don’t exactly prioritise them as normally they HAVE to do it on the day the final/absolute is given.
So yes, in my view you are both disadvantaged doing it after.
Why didn’t you get the Consent order agreed and ready to submit at Nisi? You will need a solicitor to draft up (e.g. turn whatever you’ve agreed into legal speak) as it is a legal document. But you can keep costs and time down by completing Form E and D81 yourselves (these are legal financial declarations that court require to seee for sealing the consent order, and your solicitor needs to see them too), and by doing all the negotiating between you. If you can’t agree or get the solicitor to figure it out you will start to incur big costs.
Hope that sort of answers
Look for my responses to many of the posted questions in last 3-4 weeks, and today! I’ve given the same information over and over to folks about Consent orders and divorce process . So much so I sent a message to MN today saying why can’t they post a notice at top of thread with signposting to posters of where to get information. I get so concerned about peoples lack of knowledge and not knowing the information is out there and process is actually so straight forward . Only doesn’t become straight forward if you can’t agree between you and get into acrimonious arguments.

Thanks. Yes I mean consent order. The consent order has been drafted and we have just exchanged the d81 forms. All done by a solicitor.
The consent order says that we don't claim nothing of each other and we remain in the same position before marriage, as we had no joint assets. It was a very short marriage to.
I was hoping I could still do the absolute first before getting the sealed consent order.

How long does the consent order take these days once its been submitted?

If the consent order was submitted immediately after nisi is gr acted and you asked in your petition for the courts to make financial agreements (it is a tick box on your original petition form) then it will be sealed at same time as absolute.
If solicitor has done your draft , they should have by now submitted them to court ready for absolute. You need to check with them to make sure everything is ready to go once you get to your 6 week/40 something day minimum period between nisi and final.
As long as solicitor has done this, and you asked court to make the settlement at same time, it will not hold anything up …2 get done at same time
Just check with solicitor.

Just to be sure I’m clear in what I’m saying
Normally consent order gets “sealed” (approved) at the SAME time as absolute. . It cannot ever be submitted to courts before Nisi, only after. It cannot be sealed before Absolute. Only same time or after. But afterwards is more unusual and fraught with difficulties and delays,

Ok I think I understood all that. I can basically apply for the absolute next week.
The consent order has been drafted, but not submitted to the courts yet. But I should wait for the absolute and consent to be filed at same time right? As it speeds up things, I take it that is what your telling me is best.

Does the absolute and consent order get sent together in the post or online. My solicitor submitted online. But st burys saying absolute needs to be posted?

Hmm, not sure…my solicitor I used to just write the draft consent (all we used solicitors for) submitted our consent and D81 on line to courts. I know I couldn’t do it as it needs “special” access to go into case documents (given nisi had already been granted at that stage which is earliest point you can submit) . They did that for me and notified me it was done. I was not aware that the solicitor sent anything by post as well…I just assumed it was all online. But my court was Birmingham and maybe different
if you are submitting yourself and not sending the consent and D81 via solicitor maybe this is why? Certainly there is no way I could access any of my documents once I had petitioned to add anything else on line. Once divorce petition made I only had access to documents the court then issued at each stage for me to review, sign or send back to them….so maybe this is why if you are sending yourself it has to be done by post.

My solicitor did it all. But when I rang up courts they said nothing has been submitted and they not received anything.
Mine was a annulment and they said this absolute had to be sent by post. However I think the consent is done online.

How did you do Yr absolute? Online with consent order?