We’ve seen here previously what kind of financial orders the court can make upon divorce, but what if the other party does not comply with the order? What can be done to force them to comply?
There are various methods of enforcement available, depending upon the type of order to be enforced. Some methods are specific to certain types of orders. For example, the court can require a maintenance order to be paid through the court, and if it is not paid then the party to whom the maintenance should be paid can ask the court to take enforcement action on their behalf.
Another example of an order-specific type of enforcement is where the court has ordered that a property, such as the former matrimonial home, should be sold or transferred, and the other party refuses to sign the necessary paperwork. In such cases a judge can be requested to sign the paperwork on their behalf.
The other most common methods of enforcement of family financial orders are:
Attachment of earnings orders – Requiring the debtor’s employer to make periodical deductions from the debtor’s earnings. Most commonly used to enforce maintenance orders, but obviously only available if the debtor is employed.
Judgment summons – Requesting the debtor to be committed to prison for failure to comply with the order. In practice, any committal order is likely to be suspended on condition that the debtor pay the amount due by a specified date, or by specified instalments.
Charging order – An order placing a charge on the debtor’s property, to the value of the debt. The debt is therefore secured, and can subsequently be recovered by seeking an order for the sale of the property.
Third party debt order – An order directing a third party who owes money to the debtor (e.g. the debtor’s bank) to pay the debt directly to the creditor.
Enforcement of financial orders can be a difficult and complex subject. If you would like any further advice about it, Family Law Café can help. To contact us click the Contact link above and fill in the form, or call us on 0208 768 2278.
Image: Barclays Bank, Ossett, by Tim Green, licensed under CC BY 2.0.