The Impact of Financial Abuse on Divorce Proceedings
Eloïse Bordet (Student)
Domestic abuse and violence
The Domestic Abuse Act 2021
In 2021, the UK government provided a definition of domestic abuse in the Domestic Abuse Act.
Behaviour is abusive if it consists of any of the following:
(a)physical or sexual abuse;
(b)violent or threatening behaviour;
(c)controlling or coercive behaviour;
(d)economic abuse;
(e)psychological, emotional or other abuse;
The perpetrator and the victim have to be connected to each other, and each aged 16 or over.
Prior to this definition, financial abuse was often ignored even though it has been suggested that one in six women in the United Kingdom has experienced it in a current or former relationship.
Financial abuse and its effects
Economic abuse is defined as
“any behaviour that has a substantial effect on the abused partner’s ability to acquire, use or maintain money or other property or obtain goods or services. The law is recognising that this abuse could mean that the dependent partner may not be able to leave the relationship.
If the victim does get out of the relationship and decides to start divorce proceedings, they might also experience the same type of behaviour. This could involve the perpetrator hiding certain assets, or undervaluing them, resulting in depriving the abused partner of financial remedies.
If a party has experienced domestic abuse, then they may be entitled to legal aid. A solicitor would be able to help the victim overcome this type of abuse which could include asking the court for orders, such as freezing orders to prevent the sale of the family home for instance.
Now that financial abuse is recognised in a statutory definition, the victims can benefit from more protection and resources before, during, and after the divorce proceedings, to ensure that they are no longer dependant of the abusive partner.
Bangor University Legal Advice Clinic (BULAC) offers free legal advice on all divorce and domestic violence issues. If you’d like an appointment, please call 01248 388411or emailBulac@bangor.ac.uk