When a couple decides to get a divorce, the most stressful part about the whole thing is in dividing all the assets that the couples have acquired over the years. Since the couples are expected to completely part ways and these assets were once, theirs together, so the distributions should be fair and equal. There is a lengthy procedure that a dispute resolution solicitor needs to follow in order to reach a favourable settlement; and this article will do just that.

• Taking the case to court
The dispute resolution solicitor should obtain important financial information from both sides that they can use in court. This should be a very peaceful process that needs no hassle, but if it could not be done this way, the solicitors have no choice but to subject both parties in "Ancillary Relief" which is a formal process of gathering and then presenting all the important information that will be required prior to appearing in court. The following steps are followed:

a. The applicant shall send a notice to the court to say that they are making such claim.

b. The court, as a response, will book a first hearing within the next six to twelve months of that the application is sent.

c. Both parties will be given about five months to complete Form E and send it to each other and another copy to court. Form E is a document that shows all the details about their financial information.

d.During the last two weeks before the hearing, both parties need to provide the each other with the following:
questionnaire that enumerates what the party requires of the other, time table of the history of the case, issues that they want to be attended to as "key issues".

• The initial hearing
This will take place in the presence of a judge in court and it usually only lasts about thirty minutes. The first hearing exists to establish whether there are grounds for a potential settlement between the two parties involved. After completing Form A, which informs the court that you need a judge to decide on how to distribute assets, the applicants should pay one hundred sixty-three thousand and two hundred ten pounds for the form. Should there be an Ancillary Relief prepared, the judge will study this and if there are other vital information that were not addressed, the judge will ask both parties to come back after some time (with all the information completed).

By the end of the hearing, the court will require both parties to make an appointment for financial dispute resolution.

• Financial dispute resolution

This is also done in the presence of a judge, however, it is a less formal hearing compared to usual court hearings. In this event, both solicitors will be present and they will be asked to present brief details of the case for the judge. After this, the judge will suggest a settlement in which to divide the assets. The goal in the final dispute resolution is for both parties to arrive at a final settlement to avoid further problems on the final hearing. This part of the settlement is not a staple. Some settlements, if the judge feels so, will go straight to final hearing and skip this portion altogether.

• Final hearing
If no resolution is achieve during the two initial meetings, the final hearing is the last resort to arrive at some sort of amicable settlement. This usually takes about four to six months after Form A was completed and usually lasts for as long as two days.

During this hearing both parties will be under oath and they will be asked by a different judge to present their case; after which their respective counsels with cross-examine them and the court will take a detail look are the financial evidence that they have obtained so far. At the end of it all, the judge will review the facts and then produce a final order.