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It is important to understand how your pension rights may be affected during a divorce. After all, it is likely that your pension will be one of the biggest assets you will have in retirement. In this blog post, we’ll discuss how pensions are typically divided during a divorce so that you can make informed decisions about your future.

How Are Pensions Divided?

In most cases, the starting point is for pension benefits to be divided equally between spouses when they go through a divorce. This means that each spouse will receive an equal share of the pension benefits however there are various contributing factors to take into consideration such as the length of marriage and how much pension was accrued during their marriage. Should the parties be unable to decide amicably between themselves on pension sharing, the court can be asked to help reach a decision and in certain circumstances, the court may decide that an unequal division is more appropriate.

What Factors Does the Court Consider?

When deciding how to divide pension benefits during a divorce, courts consider many different factors such as length of marriage, age and health of both parties, contributions made to the marital estate (including non-financial contributions such as childcare) and earning potential going forward. The court also looks at each party’s financial need and any other relevant factor when making its determination.

Can I Keep My Entire Pension?

The court may deem it reasonable at the request of one of the parties to grant them all or a larger portion of the pension, when offset against the value of other marital assets, such as the marital home. This is often done if one spouse has significantly more retirement savings than the other or if both parties agree that it would be fairer for one person to keep all the retirement savings rather than dividing them equally. It’s important to come to a mutual agreement with your spouse about your combined assets, which can be difficult due to the stress of the divorce.

Conclusion:

Divorcing couples should always be aware of their rights when it comes to splitting up pensions during a divorce settlement. It is important to understand how pensions are typically divided and what factors courts consider when deciding on an equitable split so that you can make informed decisions about your future financial security. Working with experienced legal professionals like Quickie Divorce who specialise in family law can help you navigate this difficult process and ensure that you get your divorce settlement agreement made legally binding via a Clean Break Financial Order package. Taking these steps now can help ensure peace of mind in years ahead!

 

Call us on 0800 803 0813 to discuss your situation further.