amicable separation & divorce - is affidavit of means required?

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8till8

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I'm helping a relation get mentally ready for separation & divorce and one key stumbling block (in their mind) is the statement of means.

The couple separated over 20 years ago and have lived separate lives since then but there was no separation agreement. Their kids are now adults so no issues there.

The home is still jointly owned on the folio and the ex has said he'll take €10k and sign it over (which everyone is happy with) the other ex has continued to live in the house and pays all the bills on it.

It appears a that everyone will be happy once the divorce is granted and €10k paid --- in this scenario is an affidavit of means required?
 
An affidavit of means is just one document required by the separation/divorce processes.

Getting a divorce in Ireland

A divorce decree allows both parties to a marriage to remarry. However, special conditions must be met before a court can grant a divorce.
www.citizensinformation.ie www.citizensinformation.ie
2. A sworn Affidavit of Means (Form 37A)
This document is a statement that sets out your financial position, for example, your assets (things you own), your income, your debts and liabilities (money you owe) and your outgoings. This will have to be vouched unless its contents are accepted by your spouse. Vouched means you will have to prove that the information is true with documents such as bank statements, pay-slips and utility bills.
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They really should be talking to their solicitor about stuff like this.
 
Even where the parties consent to the terms of a court separation or divorce, the court also has to be satisfied that proper provision has been made concerning the spouses: ie that the financially weaker spouse is provided for as appropriate.

An Affidavit of Means constitutes sworn evidence to which a judge can have proper regard when assessing this.
 
Thanks so far, yes of course they've consulted a solicitor but the question of the statement of means didn't come up, it was only thought of afterwards.

The main stumbling block is if the ex exploits something they see in the statement of means, then legal costs will increase and they already need to borrow to pay the solicitor, so the financial burden would really increase.
 
8till8 said:
but the question of the statement of means didn't come up, it was only thought of afterwards.
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That's odd unless it was a very cursory consultation that didn't get into even the basics of the actual separation/divorce processes and the documentation that is required.
8till8 said:
The main stumbling block is if the ex exploits something they see in the statement of means, then legal costs will increase and they already need to borrow to pay the solicitor, so the financial burden would really increase.
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There's simply no way around it. All of the documents mentioned in the link that I posted, including the affidavit of means, are mandatory for a judicial separation or divorce and must be produced by both parties.
 
It's an awkward one! I totally get why someone wouldn't want to produce a statement of means for a point in time, having had the lovely experience of one very frugal party who saved and scrimped to provide a home for themselves against the other who drank/gambled/frittered away the price of several houses plus a couple of injury settlements over the course of the years separated and has the cheap council house!

If you bring all that up in court if that's even allowable it might not be amicable for too long and on paper in theory the waster is the worse off financially at this stage.
 
That is a risk indeed. But if the spouse has to borrow to pay a solicitor then the means won’t be so large. People can be asset rich and cash poor but that needs to be declared.

The judge will make a judgement based on all the documentation and prior agreement of the spouses. The fact they have been living separately for 20 years will be a factor and if one has grown their assists significantly it will also be a factor.
 
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