Clean Break Consent Order

Although getting a divorce officially ends your marriage, it doesn’t end the financial obligations you have to your former spouse. They could still make a financial claim against you in the future.

To sever all financial links, you need to get a court order alongside your divorce proceedings to confirm that you want to sever all financial ties to your ex-spouse. This is called a financial order, a clean break order or a consent order. Effectively they all record the financial agreement between you in a binding court order. The orders can be arrived at by agreement or within contested court proceedings.

Obtaining an order makes the parties financially independent of each other. It can prevent your former spouse from making a claim for a share of your assets, property, income or pensions in the future.

The order outlines the agreement you’ve reached with your former spouse and records how your assets will be divided following your divorce. It can include information on property, money, investments, pensions, savings, spousal maintenance and child maintenance payments.

What is a clean break order?

A clean break order is issued and approved by the court and severs all financial ties between you and your spouse. It prevents any further claims being made by them on additional assets you acquire in the future.

A clean break order can be useful where you have a significant amount of assets to divide or ongoing financial commitments. But a clean break order is also useful whether or not you have assets, as it provides certainty going forward. It means that your spouse won’t be able to claim any assets from you in the future.

Once approved and ‘sealed’ by the court, an order is a legally binding document, therefore it should ideally be prepared by a divorce solicitor.

What type of order would be best for you?

When going through a divorce and reaching a financial settlement, everyone’s circumstances are different. So we’d recommend that you first talk to a divorce solicitor. They’ll be able to advise on the best court order for your situation.

The agreement reached by the parties must be approved by the court and become a binding order. If you don’t get an order, your spouse could still ask the court to make additional financial provisions for them.

A clean break order can be beneficial in severing all financial ties between the parties. It enables both parties to move forward and be financially independent of each other.

Where children are involved, a clean break order doesn’t stop the absent parent from being responsible for child maintenance payments. A payment schedule should be agreed on that can be included as part of the financial settlement agreement.

How long does a clean break order take?

There’s no specific timeframe on how long it takes to get a clean break order. It typically takes a few months. However, it depends on how quickly the parties can agree on the terms of the financial settlement and how long it takes the court to process your application.

It’s helpful if you and your former spouse can reach an amicable agreement. This will be a lot quicker than applying to court to reach a decision on your behalf.

Do both parties have to agree to a clean break order?

You don’t have to have the agreement of both parties to make a clean break order, but it will be quicker and less expensive if both parties can agree. If you cannot agree you need to issue court proceedings and attend court. The court will then impose an order on the division of assets.

If your spouse will not agree to a clean break order you might be able to reach an agreement through negotiation or family mediation before issuing court proceedings. Court proceedings are seen as the last resort.

If your former spouse won’t sign a clean break order you can apply to the family court for an order. However, before a decision is made, you’ll need to pay a fee to the court, make financial disclosure and attend hearings.

When can you get a clean break order?

Once your Conditional Order for divorce (formerly ‘decree nisi’) has been issued you can get a clean break order. Before the clean break order is issued by the court, you’ll need to have agreed with your spouse on how you’ll separate your assets.

Then, the court will need to approve the terms of your financial separation.

What does the clean break order process involve?

Firstly, an experienced family law solicitor will discuss your situation with you. They’ll help you decide on the best financial agreement for your situation.

Then we’ll help you with the process of filing a consent order with the court while starting divorce proceedings.

We can check over the financial agreement you’ve reached with your former spouse. We’ll make sure all clauses in the order are fair to put it into legal terms before the judge. Then we’ll get approval for your consent order.

Going forward, if you think a consent order has been breached, we can advise you on how it can be enforced and support you in the process.

Why use Rothera Bray for a clean break order?

Our family law team has decades of experience in this area. We’ll work with you to ensure the best possible outcome for you and your family.

To help reduce the financial cost to you, we’ll suggest alternative dispute resolution methods such as mediation or negotiation wherever possible. We can support you throughout this process.

If you need to go to court, we understand that it can be a daunting prospect. We’ll support you throughout, and ensure you’re always informed and comfortable with the process. We have offices across the East Midlands so we can meet you in person if you prefer, or by virtual meetings if that’s more convenient.

Our family team includes members of Resolution. We’re also Law Society Children Panel members, so have expertise in negotiating child arrangements.

Our firm includes many other legal specialists beyond divorce law. We can point you in the right direction for specialist advice on tax, trusts, pensions and property if needed.

Find out more about our divorce and relationship legal services:

Divorce and separation
Finances and divorce
Children and divorce