By 
Success story
She had an offer accepted on a small flat when her former husband wrote. He wanted a share of what her late mother had left her, and of her deposit. She asked us one question: “Can my ex husband claim money after divorce, when we split everything years ago?”
Nothing settled when they parted
They had rented throughout the marriage. When they separated, he took the car and most of the joint account. They divorced online and never asked the court to deal with money.
Since then she had saved from her salary, and her mother had left her a modest sum; together they made up the deposit. Court papers followed his letter: he had applied for a financial order, asking for a lump sum. She could not see how he could reach money that came years later. Still, she feared losing her mother’s gift.
Can my ex husband claim money after divorce if no order was made?
Often, he can. Under section 23(1) of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, financial orders can be made when the divorce order is made or at any later date. Ending the marriage does not end those claims; usually only a court order dismissing them does. Section 28(3) bars a former spouse who remarries or forms a civil partnership from then applying for maintenance or a lump sum for themselves, or any property adjustment order. He had done neither.
Section 25 tells the court to look at all the circumstances, in particular the resources each of them has or is likely to have, and what each needs. So an ex can claim against money that arrived after the divorce, including her inheritance and savings. Yet nothing in the Act says money gained long after a marriage ends must be shared. Section 25A(1) adds a duty to consider ending their financial obligations to each other as soon as it is just and reasonable. That clean break became her goal.
Full disclosure, then an early open offer
First, we told her not to ignore the papers. Under Family Procedure Rules 9.12 and 9.14, the first appointment falls 12 to 16 weeks after the application is filed. Both sides must exchange their Form E financial statements at least 35 days before it. We put both dates in her diary.
Next, she disclosed everything, because hiding the inheritance would have handed him his best argument. We helped her gather the estate papers, bank statements tracing the deposit month by month from her salary, and the joint account statement showing what he took.
His Form E showed steady work, an affordable flat and no dependants, so his claim, made so long after the divorce, looked weak on need. Proving that would still eat into her deposit, because in financial cases the court usually leaves each side to pay its own costs (rule 28.3(5)). We advised an early open offer: a small lump sum for a clean break. When the court decides whether to order costs for a party’s conduct, rule 28.3(7) makes it consider any open offer.
How the claim after divorce ended
He pushed for more, then settled well below his opening demand. The consent order provided for one lump sum, paid within weeks. Every other claim either of them had after the divorce, against the other’s income, property or pensions, was dismissed. A section 25A(3) direction bars either from applying for maintenance in future.
The agreed order went to the judge with a Form D81 statement of information from each of them, as rule 9.26 requires. Under section 33A the court can approve agreed terms on that information, and the judge did. She kept her mother’s gift and most of her savings, and the purchase went ahead.
Section 31 does not let the court vary a single lump sum paid at once. With everything else dismissed, his claim is closed. Her own facts decided this; they cannot predict another case.
What to do this week if your ex makes a claim after divorce
If a claim arrives years after your divorce, start with the court’s notice. Note the first appointment and the date, at least 35 days earlier, for exchanging Form E.
Gather your final order, any record of what each of you took at separation, statements for every account, payslips and any estate papers. Keep every original and old message exactly as it is. Do not move or spend money to keep it out of sight.
Agree nothing by text or email before taking advice; do not air the dispute online. If your divorce left no order and no claim has come after it, a clean break consent order can close the door now. The GOV.UK court fee is £62.
Read our answer to what is a consent order in divorce. Our clean break order guide explains what it ends; inheritance and divorce covers money left to you. Read how we prepare these success stories.
“A claim made years after a divorce is judged on each person’s needs and resources as they are now, so the time that has passed is not a defence on its own. Show where each later asset came from with dated statements, and hold any inheritance in an account in your sole name, with its paperwork. If you settle, put every asset on your Form D81, because the judge approves the order on that information.”
Garry Steedman, Family Law Consultant (Divorce, Children & TOLATA), Kabir Family Law
Divorced, but never settled the money?
If your divorce left the money open, or a claim has landed long after it, book a free initial consultation and bring the papers. It is confidential, with nothing to commit to. Our family law specialists will tell you whether your ex can still claim money after divorce, and what to do first.
The legal issue
A couple divorced online after a marriage spent renting, and never asked the court for a financial order. When they separated he took the car and most of the joint account. Years later she had saved a deposit from her salary and received a modest inheritance from her late mother, and had an offer accepted on a flat. Her former husband then wrote asking for a share, and his application for a financial order followed, seeking a lump sum. She feared losing her mother's gift and her new home.
The law this rests on
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 s.23(1): on making a divorce order, or at any time after, the court may make financial orders, including under s.23(1)(c) an order that either party pay the other a lump sum.
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 s.25(1): the court must have regard to all the circumstances of the case, first consideration being given to the welfare while a minor of any child of the family under 18.
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 s.25(2)(a) and (b): the income, earning capacity, property and other financial resources, and the financial needs, obligations and responsibilities, which each party has or is likely to have in the foreseeable future.
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 s.25A(1): the court must consider whether to exercise its powers so that the parties' financial obligations to each other end as soon after the order as it considers just and reasonable.
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 s.25A(3): the court may dismiss a claim for periodical payments with a direction that no further application may be made for them.
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 s.28(3): a party who remarries or forms a civil partnership after the divorce may not then apply against the other party for a financial provision order in their own favour, or for a property adjustment order.
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 s.31(1) and (2): the court may vary the orders listed in s.31(2), which include periodical payments and lump sums payable by instalments, but not a single lump sum paid at once.
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 s.33A(1): on an application for a consent order the court may make the order in the agreed terms on the basis only of the prescribed information, unless it has reason to inquire further.
- Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 s.1(1)(b): a former spouse who has not formed a subsequent marriage or civil partnership may apply for provision from the estate of the other, if the other dies domiciled in England and Wales. s.15(1): when or after the divorce order is made, on the application of either party, the court may, if it considers it just, order that the other party shall not be entitled to apply under section 2 on the applicant's death.
- Family Procedure Rules 2010 r.9.12(1)(a): the court fixes a first appointment not less than 12 and not more than 16 weeks after the application is filed.
- Family Procedure Rules 2010 r.9.14(1): not less than 35 days before the first appointment both parties must exchange and file a financial statement (Form E).
- Family Procedure Rules 2010 r.9.26(1): on an application for a consent order each party must file and serve a statement of information (Form D81).
- Family Procedure Rules 2010 r.28.3(5) to (7): in financial remedy proceedings the general rule is that the court will not order one party to pay another's costs, but it may do so because of a party's conduct, and in deciding whether to, it must have regard to any open offer to settle, among other things.
- GOV.UK: you can apply for a financial order when you apply for your divorce or at any time after that; the court fee for a consent order is £62.
How we approached it
We explained that the divorce had not ended either side's financial claims, and that he had not remarried or formed a civil partnership, so section 28(3) did not bar him. We advised her not to ignore the court papers and put the first appointment in her diary, with the Form E exchange date 35 or more days earlier.
We advised her to disclose the inheritance and the savings in full. We helped her gather the estate papers, bank statements tracing the deposit month by month from her salary, and the joint account statement showing what he took when he left. We read his Form E with her: steady work, a home he could afford and no dependants, so his needs were largely met.
Because the court usually leaves each side to pay its own costs in financial cases, we advised an early open offer of a small lump sum in return for a clean break dismissing both sides' claims, and helped her keep her correspondence short and calm.
The outcome
After one further exchange he accepted a small lump sum, well below his opening demand. The terms went into a consent order: one lump sum paid within weeks, every other claim by either of them against the other's income, property and pensions dismissed, a direction under section 25A(3) that neither could apply for maintenance in future, and directions under section 15 of the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 so that neither could claim against the other's estate. The agreed order went to the judge with a Form D81 from each of them, and the judge approved it. She kept her mother's gift and most of her savings, and the flat purchase went ahead. Her result turned on her own facts and papers, and it cannot predict how another case will go.
What to take from this
- Ending the marriage does not end the financial claims between you. Unless a court order dismisses them, a former spouse can apply years later. Remarrying, or forming a civil partnership, stops that person applying for maintenance or a lump sum for themselves, or any property adjustment order.
- The court looks at all the circumstances, including what each of you has now and what each of you needs. Money that came after the divorce can be considered, but nothing in the Act says it must be shared.
- Disclose everything, including an inheritance, and leave every original untouched: nothing deleted, nothing altered.
- This week, find the court's notice, note the first appointment and the date at least 35 days before it when Form E must be exchanged, and gather your final order, account statements, payslips and any estate papers.
- In financial cases the court usually leaves each side to pay its own costs, so an early, sensible open offer can protect what you have.
- Agree nothing by text or email before taking advice, and do not air the dispute online.
- If no claim has been made yet, a clean break consent order approved by the court can close the door now. The GOV.UK court fee is £62.
- Ask for the order to include directions under section 15 of the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, so that neither of you can claim against the other's estate.
Checked and approved for publication by Hannah Overton.
Last reviewed .
