To take the oath means to swear to the truth of what is written by you, or said by you, on either the bible or other religious book of your faith i.e. “I swear by Almighty God that this is my name and handwriting and the contents of this statement are true”.
Court proceedings to end your contract of marriage as a void, or voidable marriage e.g. failure to consummate marriage.
Assets brought into the marriage by one spouse only are often referred to as non-matrimonial property e.g an inheritance, a gift received during the marriage or shares in a family business.
Decree Nisi has been replaced by a Conditional Order. Decree Nisi was a certificate which was issued by the court part way through your divorce. One of the parties then applied for a decree absolute (now known as a Final Order) which will formally end the marriage.
The term used to describe the house that you lived in whilst married.
An order of the Court that you or your spouse/civil partner pay a fixed amount of money. The Court can order you or your spouse/civil partner to pay a lump sum in one payment or in instalments.
Money that is owned to lenders and suppliers.
A type of funding which may be available if you are in receipt of benefits, or on a limited income. Legal Aid is now only available for Family Mediation and private Family Law cases where there is serious domestic violence and/or Child protection issues.
A legal process whereby you remain man and wife, but separated. The advantage of this is that you can apply to the court for orders about financial matters if you cannot agree without obtaining a divorce.
An experienced social worker appointed by the court represents the views of the child, who usually has a legal representative.