Following a divorce, the court has a variety of different powers to divide the couple’s finances and assets.  Usually a financial order would be in ‘full and final settlement’ of all claims and there would be very limit circumstances where a variation of the settlement could be considered.

However, if the court has ordered a periodical payment order (also known as spousal maintenance) whereby one party is to pay the other a monthly sum to meet their income needs, either party can apply to the court to vary the terms of the periodical payment orders, as long as there is not a time limited bar that has passed.

It may be that circumstances have changed so the recipient partner needs a higher monthly sum, or conversely that the paying partner believes that the recipient partner needs a lower monthly sum because the receiving party now have a higher income from other sources.  It may be the case that the paying partner can no longer afford to pay because of a change in their circumstances.  In these situations, a variation application could be lodged and the parties can explain to the Court why the original amount of spousal maintenance is no longer meeting needs and/or no longer appropriate.

A hearing will usually be listed and parties would be required to provide updated financial disclosure. The court will consider whether the recipient parties “needs” have changed and whether a variation to the original order is justified. 

A party lodging a variation application should be aware of the potential cost consequences if unsuccessful in their application, that the unsuccessful party runs the risk of paying the successful parties costs.

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