Occupation Order Breach

[august29]

Hi

Wondering if anyone has any experience of this...

I have 3 kids and going through divorce process with their mum.

She is delaying house sale and financial settlement, while using the court and police to abuse me with without notice orders and constant false allegations - court and police approach is to act first and find out the truth afterwards. It has resulted in the court putting in an occupation order that states whoever has the children can occupy the family home.

The child arrangements order has been active since January, but it relies on the other order being followed. Picking the kids up for half-term, we returned to the house. It has been emptied. Beds, tables, chairs, sofas, white goods, clothes, electronics - all gone. The water is turned off at the mains and cannot be turned on without water escaping from broken fittings.
The order says we must be allowed to occupy the house when with kids, and the other party must not obstruct, harass or interfere with the party's peaceful occupation. There is a power of arrest attached. I called the police on the Friday. They came out 5 hours later and said it was a civil matter and there was nothing they could do. We at a 3am trip to my mother's house and have had to stay there since. I've been too stressed, trying to look after 3 kids during half-term to deal with this further. Kids back to school Tues and with me again over next weekend.

I just don't know what to do. Power of arrest, but police ignore it. House emptied... I can't just go and furnish it and make it habitable while I have work and 3 kids. Can't access property when kids aren't with me. Anyone else had experience of police and orders with power of arrests attached? Do they ever do anything?

Thanks
J

Why are you fighting over the house?
Surely it would best if she bought you out and you bought somewhere near where kids live .
Stop fighting get the living arrangements sorted

Presumably you contacted your solicitor? I am assuming that these are all joint assets so if she's taken them, then they will just come off her share of the settlement.
Can you force through the sale?

I can't buy her out - my credit file has been trashed. As we were separating, she emptied all £33k of savings, blocked access to my income and stopped paying mortgage, loan etc I was left without access to money or work. House forms part of business premises - it's not a straightforward sale and 3 buyers have come and gone (2 were 4 months into the process)

I'm not sure what to advise sorry - it sounds a nightmare. All ypu can do is go back to court on an emergency order basis ?

Well she won't be going back to the house after emptying and thrashing it, it seems pretty clear that she's abandoned it and moved out now?

I'd be going into the court tomorrow asking for an urgent hearing to get the occupation order changed/rescinded. Explain what's happened (and show them photos of the state of the house). Hopefully you get to see a decent judge who sorts it out promptly. When I needed to make an urgent/emergency child arrangement order I was sat in front of a judge within 15 minutes of entering the local courts. I guess you probably have a solicitor so you should probably advise them what you're going to do beforehand (if you want to waste a load more money on legal fees by all means instruct them to handle it for you).