Rich opt out of English courts for private divorces

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The wealthy are used to opting for private healthcare and private schools, but now private divorce is also an option.

Due to intense delays waiting for court appointments and unwanted publicity once they are received, couples in England are increasingly turning to private arbitration to help them sort out the details of their divorces, lawyers say, in some cases costing hundreds of millions. threatened pounds.

The process, which takes place in private and is more streamlined than in court, is usually presided over by a senior lawyer or a retired judge.

“It’s coming up more and more because the court system is completely overwhelmed,” said lawyer Rebecca Cockcroft, a partner at Fladgate.

According to the Institute of Family Law Arbitrators, there were 130 financial settlement arbitrations in the year to mid-December 2024, up from 89 in 2023. Barrister James Roberts QC, president of the Family Law Bar Association, predicts that this number, currently only 1 percent of contested divorces, will continue to rise due to 2024 of a change in the court rules in April, which means that the parties must first try to find a solution outside the court.

London has earned the reputation of the “divorce capital” of the world. Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum reached a £550 million High Court settlement with Princess Haya bint Al-Hussein in 2021, while high-profile divorces such as those of Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales, have been widely covered by the media and gained a considerable reputation for their advocates for

The benefits of going private are available to anyone who can pay, but are particularly attractive to the wealthy: speed, privacy and choice of arbitrator.

Private client lawyers have long complained about the dismal state of the court system. Although the number of days judges sit in the Supreme Court’s family division, which hears the highest-value divorce cases, has barely changed since 2011, the time to settle big-money disputes has fallen, they say. are lawyers.

“If you’re making a financial request, that’s a good four months. . for your first meeting,” Cockcroft said, then “several months” of hearings for settlement negotiations and “several more” for final hearings.

Divorce can take up to two years through the courts, but in arbitration it can take up to six months, says barrister Alexis Campbell QC, joint head of chambers at 29 Bedford Row.

As well as the obvious emotional benefits of a faster solution, it can also be cheaper; although you have to pay for an arbitrator as well as your lawyers, Campbell estimates that a court divorce can “easily” cost £100,000 – 2 minutes By speeding up the process, arbitration reduces the chances of legal letters, extended arguments and expensive asset revaluations.

A greater push for open courts means that financial and relationship disputes in family courts are now more accessible to the press and public; the kind of attention that many wealthy families would prefer to avoid.

“Ninety-nine percent of my clients wouldn’t want to think that someone could come in and listen to what’s going on in my divorce,” says attorney Jane Keir, a partner at Kingsley Napley.[Arbitration] is absolutely private and no one can enter unless invited.”

Although the choice of an arbitrator must be agreed upon by both parties, less affluent spouses may fear that their partner has chosen one more favorable to them.The adoption of arbitration has been slower than some had expected, perhaps in part because it lacks the perceived majesty of the judiciary. It is also an unfamiliar option.

Campbell, who acts as both a judge and an arbitrator, says the latter is under far less pressure than the former; the judge would only know what their cases were the night before and thus could struggle to get a full hearing, but as an arbitrator “they got my full attention . . . It’s a vastly improved system.”

The government encourages forms of “non-judicial dispute resolution”, such as arbitration, to relieve pressure on the judicial system.

The UK Ministry of Justice said the government wanted to promote arbitration “to help people and businesses avoid the time, expense and stress of legal battles”.