Did you know, some companies specalise in assisting parties with their family law fees?
Family law disputes can be an expensive and winding road at times. We get it, and to help we have partnered with well-regarded litigation funders such as Just Fund and Plenti to arrange funding for parties that cannot finance their family law disputes. You also have the option in some circumstances to apply to the Family Court for the other party to assist you in paying your legal fees. Both types of payments are known as “litigation funding”.
Often when parties separate, there is not a level playing field in terms of income, savings, and other assets, which is why litigation funding is vital to ensure one party is not disadvantaged due to their financial circumstances.
How does the funding work?
Litigation funding via Court Order is available in unique cases where you must have an arguable case and the other party must have the capacity to pay your fees.
Litigation funding via a company is a common strategy used by clients to fund their family law fees as their borrowing capacity is not based on income, employment, or credit history! Generally, the lender will review your matter and decide as to the range of your likely entitlements/your worst-case scenario.
The lender may then lend you a portion of your likely entitlement, which will act similarly to a line of credit. The funder will charge you some interest, but you do not need to make any repayments until the family law matter has been resolved (meaning you will only have to repay the lender the loan amount when the family law settlement occurs).
Do you have to own a house to obtain funding?
Funding is only available to parties that have a property (or parenting and property) dispute. For some funders, you do need to have real property registered in your name. For others, the real property could be solely in your partner’s name.
The above is intended only as a general overview of litigation funding options. If you want to learn more or to discuss your options, you can contact our Family Law team on (02) 6336 1485.
Beatrice Patterson | Family Law Solicitor