High Net Worth Divorce Solicitors in London

High net worth divorce expertise

At OTS Solicitors, our high net worth divorce expertise starts with helping those looking to protect their wealth through prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, trust and corporate structures, family investment companies and forum shopping.

If separation and divorce advice is required, whether you are the high net worth spouse or not, we act quickly to ensure you receive the strategic advice necessary to help you choose the court jurisdiction advantageous to your situation. We also guide and support you through the process of securing a divorce and reaching an agreement on the arrangements for your children and the financial settlement.

The divorce team is experienced in working with wealth managers, agents, trustees and their lawyers, financial advisors, tax experts and accountants, business advisors, corporate lawyers and family investment companies.

We will instruct leading barristers, asset tracers, international family lawyers on jurisdiction issues, forensic accountants and pension actuaries to help you achieve a financial settlement that reflects the extent of the family wealth and standard of living enjoyed during the marriage.

You can be confident that our care and attention to detail mean we will cover all the things that are important to you, whether that is assuring you of complete confidentiality and discretion through the use of international family arbitration to broker a divorce settlement or budgeting for post-divorce staffing requirements.

The high net worth divorce challenges

The challenges involved in high net worth divorce settlements are not just about how much money you have and the property you own. If you are ultra-wealthy but hold all your assets in cash, your divorce challenges may relate to publicity, reputational damage or international children law proceedings.

However, if you or your spouse are high net worth individuals, it is normal for your high net worth divorce to present specific financial challenges. Experienced high net worth divorce solicitors can guide you through those complexities. We will involve you and your support team in the technical issues as much or as little as you prefer as not everyone who has an international lifestyle or is in the eye of the media, or has a multi-million business to run, wants to know all the legal complications involved in their high asset divorce.

With our high net worth divorce lawyers you can trust our discrete specialist divorce solicitors to “get on with the job” liaising with your financial team and personal assistants so you know what you need to know, without being inundated by divorce communications.

If you are a high net worth individual and need pre-separation advice on your divorce options, you need specialist and experienced high net worth divorce solicitors on your side to guide you through the complicated, technical and emotional high net worth divorce process.

Our high net worth divorce solicitors do not concentrate solely on the international or complex assets in your divorce. However complicated the asset structures or size of your financial settlement, we remain focused on you and what you want to achieve.

The high net worth divorce issues

If you are contemplating a high net worth separation or divorce your UK divorce solicitor has to consider any special challenges associated with your divorce, such as:

• International divorce- The court jurisdiction for divorce and financial settlement proceedings can have a massive impact on the size of the financial settlement
• Arbitration- The court process to resolve any children or financial aspects of your separation and divorce may not be the best option for you and your family if you want to keep your family life confidential. We use experienced family arbitrators (private judges) who can be an excellent and discreet alternative to court litigation
• Reputational damage- If you are an entrepreneur, business owner, sports star or media personality, the fallout from your divorce may be reputational damage to your career or business. We work with your publicity team and agents and with reputational damage specialists to minimise the effect of your separation or divorce on you and your family
• Finding assets– One of the key attributes of a high net worth divorce solicitor is their ability to find the money. Admittedly, in some divorce cases, full financial disclosure is provided, but it often isn’t. Our team of UK divorce lawyers works with forensic accountants and asset tracing specialists to establish the extent of the assets, as, without that information, a fair financial settlement cannot be achieved. If you are concerned about assets being disposed of or transferred out of the court jurisdiction then injunction applications can be issued
• Defining family assets– In high net worth divorces, you need to define the matrimonial and non-matrimonial assets. The distinction is key to the potential size of the financial settlement because the court is unlikely to share non-matrimonial assets if a spouse’s needs (based on the family standard of living) can be met through sharing matrimonial assets. This legal argument is raised in high net worth divorces involving inherited wealth, trust assets and pre-marriage owned assets, such as company shareholdings
• Special contribution cases- In high net worth divorces it is essential to see if a special contribution argument can be raised as this may affect the size of the financial settlement. If you are ultra-wealthy and the wealth derives from a “special contribution” then you or your spouse may be able to ring-fence a share of the assets. This legal argument is raised in high net worth divorces involving entrepreneurs
• Offshore assets-  If assets are held offshore your high net worth divorce solicitors should have experience in international family law cases and be able to call upon the expertise of specialist overseas family lawyers and professionals
• Trust assets– It is common for high net worth divorces to include assets held in onshore or offshore trusts as part of wealth protection measures. Financial settlement proceedings involving trusts can require analysis of the nature of the trust (nuptial or non-nuptial) or  require applications for disclosure of discretionary trust information from trustees and administrators
• Asset valuation– Valuing wealth accurately in any high asset divorce is essential. Often assets are held in complicated business, pension, trust or investment structures. We will work with forensic and shadow accountants and your financial advisors to protect your interests
• Asset and business restructuring– If you can reach an agreement or the court makes a financial court order you may need to carry out asset and business restructuring. We will work with your existing corporate law advisors or call upon the expertise of our corporate law team to advise on asset and business restructuring
• Tax consequences of financial settlements– In any financial settlement proceedings you need to look at the “net effect” of any financial settlement after considering the tax consequences of a financial settlement in the UK or overseas. We will work with your tax advisors and accountants to factor in and minimise the tax consequences of your high net worth financial settlement

High net worth divorce issues are not just financial. They can be emotional too. If you are ultra-wealthy, the temptation is to let the divorce lawyers get on with it. Whilst you may be able to afford any amount in legal fees that may not be the best approach to your separation and divorce. Our high net worth divorce solicitors will listen to what you want and focus on securing your objectives as quickly as possible by negotiating hard and providing robust strategic representation in divorce and financial settlement proceedings to help you achieve the result that best meets your personal and commercial goals.

What is considered a high net worth divorce?

A high asset divorce is any financial settlement where assets exceed needs. Often the divorce settlement involves property in England and overseas, trust assets, inherited wealth, multi-million company shareholdings or highly complex asset structures. In any ultra high net worth divorce, the family is likely to have international connections and offshore wealth. Court jurisdiction can substantially affect the size and structure of the financial settlement or the approach taken to non-disclosure or joinder of parties.

Frequently Asked Questions on High Net Divorce

How is a high net worth divorce different from a standard divorce?

In a standard divorce, your solicitor works out who gets to keep the family home and if a pension sharing order should be made. A high net divorce often involves disputes over whether assets are classed as matrimonial assets or not, and therefore available to share, as well as complicated issues over asset structures, valuations, international family law and the relevance of prenuptial or postnuptial agreements. With all these special considerations, it is best to instruct a divorce solicitor with expertise in high net worth financial settlements.

How does high net worth divorce work?

The law is the same in a high net worth divorce, but there are additional complexities, such as international court jurisdiction if one spouse is based overseas, has international connections, or has assets or trusts held outside the UK.

A divorce solicitor with expertise in high net worth divorce can help you prepare your divorce strategy. That strategy can be crucial in helping you start divorce or financial proceedings in the preferred country. Early intervention can save you millions.

If your spouse is high net worth, it is easy to become overwhelmed by their force of will and exit strategy. That’s when having a divorce lawyer on your side, guiding you through how a high net worth divorce works, pays dividends. They can help you trace assets that are not readily apparent and ensure that property and investments are accurately valued and categorised as matrimonial assets.

How are assets divided in a high net worth divorce?

In a high net worth divorce, assets are divided on the principle of fairness rather than needs, as the assets will exceed needs. Legal arguments tend to focus on the values attributed to complex asset structures, their liquidity and categorisation.

What amounts to a fair high net worth financial settlement depends on various factors, such as the extent of matrimonial and non matrimonial assets, copper bottomed and realisable assets and the existence of prenuptial or postnuptial agreements.

A court will divide the matrimonial assets in a fair way, starting with the premise that the family assets should be divided equally unless there is a good reason to depart from equality. A good reason may be the short length of the marriage or the existence of pre-marriage acquired wealth.

How are business and international assets handled in a high net worth divorce?

Business and international assets will form part of a high net worth financial settlement if they are matrimonial assets and not ringfenced by a prenuptial agreement.

It is crucial that business and international assets are accurately valued and categorised.  If a spouse’s assertion on their relevance or value is not robustly challenged, the extent of the financial settlement could be very different.

Can offshore accounts and investments be included in the settlement?

Offshore accounts and investments can be included in a high net worth financial settlement, but your financial lawyer will work hard to structure your financial settlement to ensure you can access and enforce your award. This may involve considering the value of offshore accounts and investments, but ensuring your financial settlement includes assets held within the UK or ones that are realisable and reasonably capable of enforcement.

Do I need a lawyer who specialises in high net worth divorces?

High net worth divorce requires a specialist strategy and skills. That’s why you need an expert high net worth divorce lawyer with the knowledge and experience of guiding you through a high net worth divorce where there are complicated asset structures, international wealth, third party asset holders (such as trusts and companies) and committed spouses dedicated to concealing or minimising their wealth despite your willingness to settle for a fair financial court order.

What financial documents should I prepare?

There is no need to prepare any specific financial documents before seeking legal advice from a high net worth divorce solicitor. Some people have a wealth of information, others have a comprehensive asset schedule, and some have scant information about their spouse’s finances, instead relying on the extent of the trappings of wealth to deduce that their partner is high net worth. Whatever the extent of your knowledge and paperwork, our finance lawyers, working with your financial advisors and forensic accountants, can help reveal the extent of the matrimonial assets and achieve a fair high net worth divorce settlement.

Get in touch with our high net worth divorce solicitors in London

For family law legal advice, we can talk to you at our offices in London, over the phone or online via Web Conferencing such as Zoom. For expert help, contact our high net worth divorce solicitors in London.