pension entitlement

hi
i have been married 25 years but seperated 11years, i recieved a diy divorce from my husband a few weeks ago, which stated i could not claim any financial from him, my husband has a large pension which is due this year, so i wrote to the courts and stopped the divorce so i could claim part of the pension, when we seperated i left him the house and i took nothing, i have now been told that because of the type of divorce it was i can not claim any moneys from him and it has now been cancelled, and that i will have to file a divorce on the grounds that we have been seperated more than 2 years, my main question is, does he have to apcept the divorce as i only work part time but i just miss out on leagal aid, and i could end up paying a very large bill that i cant afford, and end up worse off in the long run, if he refuses the divorce am i entitled to anything whist we are still married, i only want what im legally entitled too, for when i retire in a few years time, ive never asked or want maintanace ect. just a share of the pension for whilst we were together, thank you

Sign nothing - agree to nothing until you've got more information about the "type of divorce it was" 11 years ago.
Need more info justine
Was it a "judicial separation" ie you never got Decree Nisi or Decree Absolute after you separated?
ie you are still married?
If you are the years of separation make no difference to your right to claim Ancillary Relief - a financial settlement - including sharing the pension.
The wording of the communication from the DIY divorce company would be helpful.
If you're still married he can't stop you applying to the court to sort out your finances.

hi, thanks for your reply
i havent signed or agreed to anything, the divorce paper that he sent was so basic, just said names addresses, and reason of divorce was the time of seperation, no signiture needed, and in small print about no finalicals to share, i only recieved the paperwork approx a month ago
i took it to a solicitor, who had never seen anything like it, so we expect its a quicky online one, and the solicitor then filled to look in to the pension, then i recieved a letter saying that i couldnt claim because on that type of divorce and it was now cancelled, and i would have to start a divorce proceddings myself, im worried to go ahead as i already have a expensive ( for me) bill and avent really got anyware yet
if he detest against the divorce ill be in the same situation but paying off a large solictors bill,

sorry ment to mention we seprerated years ago, no legal sepration of any type.

"i recieved a diy divorce from my husband a few weeks ago, which stated i could not claim any financial from him,"

No lawyers involved in his DIY Divorce Co. I guess?
He may have been misled about his rights in this situation?
Have you told your husband you've taken legal advice and on divorce you're entitled to make a claim for Ancillary Relief and will do so unless you can reach a voluntary settlement including his pension - but would prefer to reach a voluntary agreement and draw up a Consent Order to be endorsed by the court?
You could ask what he considers a reasonable settlement?

yeah he hasent or didnt have a solicitor,
he did tell me he was filling for divorce, and i said that was fine
it was only the small print about finances that made me think about the pension, well to be honest i nearly left it to late it was my daughter that said, mum that pension was ment for both of you when you retire,
as soon as i went to see a solicitor i phoned my husband and explained what i was doing,
i think he has only put in for the divorce because his pension is due this year, he wasnt happy that i was detesting against the divorce.
thank you for the advice about Ancillary Relief, i wasnt sure if to go back to my solicitor and go a head as its so expensive, i will read in to properly and will go see my solicitor asap, thank you

Justine,

If you took nothing when you separated then you would certainly be entitled to a share of the marital assets now. Even if you had signed a Separation Agreement it could be overturned if it was not fair.
How old were your children when you parted? Did they stay with you? Did he contribute anything towards them, you and/or your housing?

There is an argument that you should not share in assets accrued post separation but that is a difficult area where property values are concerned. We have had people at wiki in a similar situation to you who have been separated for many years but still had to hand over a large share of the FMH even though they have paid the mrotgage since separatiuon. As far as the pension goes, you seem only to be asking for a share of what was built up while you were together. You need to know his current CETV and also what the benefits from the pension will be - ie projected lump sum and annual pension. Remember too that as long as you remain married you have the cushion of a widow's pension if he predeceases you - when you are divorced that will disappear. Also bear in mind that as his pension is close to be ing taken, it has a more real value ... ie you can put a figure on the cash lump sum and you can know what his income will be.

There is other stuff you need to find out - ie what kind of pension it is - is it index linked for example? - and also how a pension share may be able to work - can you share within his scheme or does cash have to be transferred out. At what age will you be able to take your share of the pension? This all makes a difference to how it would work out.

Remember this is a two way street and your assets would also go into the joint pot - although you can argue for them to be kept out IF they were built up post separation - ie property/pension.

The divorce and the finances are separate. You can have the divorce without the financial settlement and sort that out separately - but do bear in mind the point about the widow's pension and get the finances sorted before the Absolute if you can.

You need to know each other's full financial situation ... and for that you would need a form Eexchange - it can be voluntary at first - and see if you can reach agreement without the need for the expense of court. If it looks like going that way, you can self rep at least at first and bring in a legal team if it gets sticky.

Hadenoughnow