Maintenance payments following separation or divorce - is it time to review how much you are paying or receiving?
There is a widely accepted formula for child support (15% of net income for one child, 20% for two and so on, with various variations). But there is no such formula for spouses or former partners. Many payments are linked to annual review based the retail prices index, which is expected to be as low as 1% or less within the course of the next 6 months. Since the payment sum was agreed/ordered by the court, there may have been many changes in the life of both payer and recipient. The Recession may mean loss of employment entirely, or a notable decrease. The receiving person may have begun to live with a new partner. The children may have grown up and become independent, but if there was a global sum being paid to the household where they lived in education, no one may have reviewed the sums paid.
The law is has developed recently. Where there has been a change of circumstances that would materially affect the fairness of the maintenance paid, then it should be reviewed. The courts will not award a change in the period immediately after a previous agreement/order unless the change was completely unforseeable. Sometimes, a review is an opportunity to capitalise the income provision, so that perhaps a redundancy payment can be used to bring a continuing and reviewable obligation, with its risks for both parties, to an end.
Hazel Wright
Partner, Family
