What Is A Consent Order?

When the majority of people divorce it is recommended that they obtain a consent order. But what is a consent order?

A consent order reflects the financial agreement that the parties have reached and is implemented as part of their divorce process. The most important clause within the consent order is the clean break clause. This prevents either party from returning to the court in the future for a second bite of the cherry.

If a consent order is not obtained on a clean break basis then both parties’ financial claims against each other remain open and, ultimately, they can return to them in the future, should the need arise. (The exception being if the applicant has remarried).

The consent order explains how the assets of the marriage are going to be divided/apportioned. For example, it can reflect that the jointly owned family home is to be transferred from one party to the other, and how and when lump sums will be paid. It will also be the legal basis for which a pension sharing order can be made.

It is extremely important to note that even though it is straightforward to obtain a divorce online these days by doing it yourself, this will not include a consent order. Therefore, legal advice is required in relation to this aspect of your case. It will need to be prepared by a solicitor.

Seeking Legal Advice

Consent orders can be drafted by a solicitor when the parties agree what the financial arrangements are going to be. If there is no agreement with regards to the financial arrangements then it's recommended that you obtain your own legal advice so that a solicitor can assist you with negotiating this and/or applying to the court if necessary. Most solicitors offer a fixed fee for preparing a financial agreement that has been reached between the parties.

A consent order can only be considered by the court once the condition order has been pronounced. There does, therefore, have to be existing divorce proceedings in order for this to be obtained. For divorces issued prior to April 2022 the decree nisi must have been pronounced. For divorces issued after April 2022 the conditional order must have been obtained.

In addition to the consent order a “statement of information” is also prepared as part of this process. This summarises the parties’ financial circumstances, both before the order is granted and also once it has been implemented.  The documents are considered by a District Judge on paper to ensure that the agreement is fair in all the circumstances of the case. If the Judge is happy with this, the order will be approved by the court.  The length of time that this takes can differ from between 2-4 weeks.

Following the approval of the consent order the decree absolute and final order can then be applied for.

If you need legal advice in regards to your Divorce, contact our Family Law Solicitors in Wilmslow and Manchester - they will be happy to help.