How to cut the costs of getting divorced

Legal aid for the 120,000 couples who divorce in a typical year all but disappears in England and Wales this week, except in cases where domestic violence can be proved. While many are predicting a big increase in DIY divorces, costing as little as £37, the changes have also prompted the arrival of a raft of new fixed-fee legal deals that keep lawyers' bills below £500.

If you are one of the many divorcing couples who rent property and have few assets, which can be divided up relatively amicably – such as "I'll take the books and you take the CDs" – then the easiest and quickest route to dissolving your marriage is a low-cost website. Some three out of 10 couples fall into this category.

Quickie-divorce.com has been around for some six years and was used last year by more than 15,000 people. It offers two services. It will provide all the paperwork, together with guidance notes which you download, for £37; for £67 it will complete the papers and send them to court.

Co-operative's legal services arm also offers a DIY divorce, for £118.80. But it is important to remember that these services only work for uncontested actions. This drafting of a divorce petition is relatively straightforward. One side, the petitioner, cites grounds for divorce, such as two years' separation, unreasonable behaviour, or adultery. Then you simply pay the court fees and are divorced.

But if you are expecting custody issues, own a property, or have significant assets, these websites are almost certainly not the right route. Divorcing couples should also remember that they have to budget for the unavoidable £385 court fees on top of whatever they pay to online sites.

Around two-thirds of divorces do involve a financial order to share out assets, such as property and pensions. The split is generally agreed between the former partners or their lawyers. Comparatively few go to a full court hearing where a judge imposes a settlement. But where they do, the costs can be enormous, with bills for £15,000 for each side not uncommon.

A number of law firms are now launching fixed-fee deals for applicants who need legal advice but want to cap the potential cost. The Co-op's "managed divorce" deal costs £570 for the petitioner and £360 for the respondent.

Bath-based divorce solicitor Richard Crallan of Crallan Family and Divorce Solicitors offers what he claims is a unique fixed-price divorce service.

"Most people we deal with have property, pensions and other valuable items. If you and your ex are agreed on everything, you can use some of the simpler websites to list the agreement, dividing up the property, creating an order to fix the division," says Crallan. However, he says that using a lawyer can enable a partner to get a fair share – as well as recognise a reasonable offer.

"A lot of my work involves talking people out of a bad deal – often a woman who has been bullied into agreeing something, perhaps with the threat of court action. This is at an emotionally fragile time. Having a lawyer act for you means the other side will take more care disclosing assets – and, if needs be, we can go to court to order bank statements," he says.

Excluding the £385 standard court fees, Crallan charges £475 for a basic divorce, £750 for an agreed financial settlement, £1,375 where there is no financial agreement, and up to £5,375 where there are a number of court hearings. His fixed-price scheme does not cover those on large salaries, owning very expensive houses, or with overseas assets or trusts. He has no involvement with child custody issues.

Intelligent Divorce, based in Uckfield, East Sussex, is another law firm offering fixed prices, with a deal that is, in effect, a halfway house between full lawyer representation and an automated website. Its fee is £719, but it also offers a co-operative service for a couple, fixed at £599 each.

Founder Mahie Abey, who first practised family law in 1993, set up the website before legal aid ended. He says: "There has been a lot of publicity about legal aid stopping but the reality was that it was difficult to get, and only a handful of firms in our area offered it. We had not done a legal aid case in 15 years. But in 2011, with legal aid still in place, we realised many could not afford solicitors but needed legally sound advice at an manageable price."

The result was a website which mixes a DIY approach with hand-holding from case managers, who are trained but not necessarily legally qualified. "We put ourselves in a position where we can advise because we know the family finances. The client does the hard work but we are there to help," Abey says. But he admits Intelligent Divorce is intended for couples who can still communicate with each other. "It's not for those who are spitting and hitting, who absolutely hate each other. But most divorces are straightforward. Other than the celebrity-style cases, the really big bills go to those who have taken their marriage break-up as the precursor to all-out war."

Going by the book

A number of books offer useful guides to people going through divorce, from organising finances and splitting property, to breaking the news to children and picking the best lawyer.

Divorce for Dummies costs £9.99 while the Which? Guide to Divorce and Splitting Up is £10.99.

The recently-published How2Divorce (£16.99) by specialist lawyer Debra Stevens is a mix of information and worksheets which answer commonly posed questions.

Stevens says: "I recommend divorcing couples take one day at a time to work out where to go from here, options, solutions both for finances and children, and then a time to reflect. But knowledge is essential so I have a long section which covers breaking up a civil partnership, and practical information on how to handle disputes about children, finances, and dealing with domestic abuse. The final step is putting the plan into action, including going to court."

Stevens includes her "personal journey". She says: "My parents broke up when I was seven. I married at 20, divorced at 24 (there were no children or assets but I got the microwave and he got the hi-fi) remarried at 37, but the relationship deteriorated although I still get on with my ex. Divorce is tough for all concerned emotionally, but eventually the pain subsides."

Case study: Jane Legate

When Jane Legate's marriage finally hit the rocks, she went to see lawyers. But she was too well off for legal aid.

"I wanted to get every penny out of my husband. But I found solicitors mostly unhelpful and exceptionally expensive – I got a £300 bill for a 40 minute discussion I thought was free." [See footnote.]

The divorce was not complex. Although the couple lived in a £1m-pound-plus house in Hampton Court, and each had substantial pension funds from their jointly-owned wedding photo business, they had agreed on how to split these assets.

Jane, now 58, then found Crallans with its fixed-price offer. She says: "The fees worked out at a bit under £4,000 – compared with the £30,000 or more I was quoted elsewhere. I think the others saw the value of our home and other assets, knew we had no children, mortgage or other debts to worry about. So they calculated the bill as a percentage of our total property. Lawyers can only work for one side in a divorce – so my ex-husband paid a lot more.

"Having a lawyer on my side meant realism. Crallans advised me how to go forward when my ex kept refusing offers for the house as too low. Divorce was horrible, but knowing I would not set the taxi meter going every time I called my lawyer, was some respite."