When businesses go through financial difficulties, insolvency practitioners aren’t just there to wind things up. If they are called in at the right time, as experts they can help a venture to recover and keep things going.

This is what Neil Marshman, director of Marshman Price Limited, particularly enjoys. The firm offers business advice to a wide range of firms, but has a specialism in smaller, owner-managed enterprises. Neil says that he finds that divorce often goes hand in hand with a business breakdown.

“We help individuals experiencing financial difficulties with their business. We can help rescue businesses and personal finances but if we cannot do that, we will sensitively advise them and help to wind things up,” said Neil, who has been working in the sector since 1985.

“We do get asked to advise in divorce proceedings. These proceedings can often follow on as a direct result of insolvency. If a couple are experiencing problems, financial trouble can often be the last straw. There are also husband and wife businesses that we get involved in that can need sorting out in a break-up.”

Neil got into insolvency work “by accident” after starting work with a firm of accountants. He found that time spent in the insolvency department better suited his temperament than the audit department

“Like many things you also need a sense of humour to get through and also be sympathetic. The nature of the work means that I am often helping people who are in a very difficult and upsetting situation,” added Neil, who is based in Wellingborough

Neil Marshman can be contacted on 0800 082 9989 or at rnmarshman@marshmanprice.co.uk  

Money worries will help cut divorce rate

Money worries among married couples are likely to cause a drop in UK divorce rates, according to a survey of 70 of Britain's top divorce lawyers, reports the Independent.

Nearly half of all lawyers believe the numbers of divorcing couples will fall because of the credit crunch, according to the study from chartered accountants Grant Thornton published last month.

The drop in house prices means many separating couples are finding it difficult to sell their family home, or that the selling price is too low to fund two separate households. But the proportion of couples citing economic woes as the reason for relationship breakdowns is likely to increase, they warn.

The report predicts that financial difficulties will also fuel the growing popularity of pre and post-nuptial agreements as well as an increase in warring partners trying to hide assets from each other. And it warns that unmarried couples continue to suffer from lack of legal protection.

The Court of Appeal ruling above certainly makes pre-nups a more attractive option but our lawyers still come across too many unmarried clients who believed they would get a ‘fair’ share of their partners wealth, only to discover they have no legal entitlement to anything. Let’s hope the next ruling sets a precedent for unmarried couples too.

Does working long hours really safeguard marriages? 

New research in Australia is suggesting that long work hours could be good for a couple’s marriage.

The study found that men are less likely to divorce their partner if they work for between 40 to 50 hours a week. About one in five Australian workers report logging 50 hours or more a week

If the extra hours are bringing in more money, it may be helping to keep the marriage together, according to Melbourne Institute economist Mark Wooden.

"The optimal work arrangement appears to be where the man works a 41-to-49-hour week," said Professor Mark Wooden, an economist at the Melbourne Institute.

Professor Wooden used data which tracked Australian families between 2002 and 2006, to conclude that long work hours do not result in higher divorce rates.

Andrew Woolley, of Woolley & Co, believes this is likely to be largely down to the fact that the extra money brought in by the extra hours adds to the financial security of the family.

“We find that one of the main underlying reasons for divorce is financial difficulty, regardless of what other factors are mentioned,” he said.

“It can go too far that way though with a person spending so many hours at work that it causes cracks in a relationship.

“Understanding what is the root cause of a relationship breakdown can make it easier to deal with the resulting divorce proceedings as the professionals involved are aware of potential flashpoints and so can act accordingly.”

Glorious grandchildren

Woolley & Co has teamed up with leading website www.gloriousgrandchildren.co.uk to offer legal advice to site visitors.

Billed an online meeting place for grandparents in the UK, the site has become a popular place for grandparents to get advice and swap tips to make the time they spend with their children’s offspring as rewarding as possible.

As a specialist in family law, Woolley & Co has significant experience dealing with legal issues relating to grandparents and so was approached by the site to offer advice to users.

Now people can email their legal queries for one of the firm’s lawyers to look at and give them an informed answer.

Check out the site at www.gloriousgrandchildren.co.uk   

Divorce myths dispelled

Woolley & Co is in the process of publishing its third book in as many years.

101 Myths about Divorce and Separations is aimed at dispelling some of the Chinese whispers and untruths about divorce and separation that far too many people still rely on when making life-changing decisions.

It will be launched at the Divorce Show in Birmingham in September.

“We are producing a handy guide looking at some of the most common misconceptions rather than a legal reference book but we think there is plenty in it that will raise eyebrows,” said firm managing partner Andrew Woolley.

“Issues like ‘commonlaw’ are addressed and the gulf between common perceptions and the reality of the law can be huge.

“Copies will be circulated to our professional contacts to give to their clients but it should be stressed that there is no substitute for expert legal advice.”

The latest edition of the previous book, Surviving Family Conflict and Divorce is still available as a pdf from www.family-lawfirm.co.uk or by calling 0800 321 3832.