When a marriage ends, the future can suddenly feel uncertain – for you, your family, and everything you've built together. If substantial wealth, a business, pensions, overseas property, or other complex assets are involved, navigating that uncertainty becomes even more complex, making careful legal guidance all the more important.
Sharp Family Law is a Bath firm of high net worth divorce solicitors, helping business owners and people with complex or overseas assets reach fair financial settlements. That guidance is built on serving clients across Bath since 2008, alongside founder Richard Sharp's 35+ years of experience.
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What makes a divorce ‘high net worth’?
There’s no single threshold for a ‘high net worth’ divorce. In England and Wales it usually means assets above about £1 million, or complex holdings – businesses, pensions, trusts or overseas property – regardless of the total. What makes these cases complex is usually the nature of the assets, not their size.
Since 2008, Sharp Family Law has advised business owners, company directors and internationally-connected clients on complex-asset divorces from its Bath office. For how the process works in detail – the £1 million threshold, financial disclosure, and how each asset type is divided – see our guide on how a high net worth divorce works.
Dividing business assets in a divorce
A business is often one of the most valuable assets in a marriage, but unlike cash or property, it can’t simply be split down the middle without affecting livelihoods, employees, or future income. That’s why Sharp Family Law helps business owners protect and fairly divide company shares, business interests, and directors’ interests during a high net worth divorce.
Reaching a fair outcome starts with a reliable valuation. From there, the focus is usually on preserving the business while reflecting its value within the wider financial settlement – through offsetting against other assets, staged payments, or, less commonly, a transfer of shares. Where a spouse is also a director or shareholder, or where business partners and co-owners are involved, those interests need to be carefully respected throughout the process.
Pensions in a high net worth divorce
Sharp Family Law advises on the division of high-value and complex pensions, including SIPPs, final salary schemes, and overseas pensions. There are three main ways to divide a pension – sharing, offsetting and attachment – and our divorce and pensions page explains how each one works.
Choosing between these approaches begins with understanding what a pension is truly worth – a question that final salary schemes rarely answer clearly on paper. High-value pensions often require specialist actuarial valuation, while overseas or multiple pensions add further complexity, as each scheme may follow different valuation and transfer rules.
High-value property, savings and investments
Sharp Family Law advises on dividing high-value property, savings, and investment portfolios during divorce, including second homes and assets held overseas. While the family home is often the starting point, second homes and buy-to-let properties bring their own financial and practical considerations.
Savings, investment portfolios, and other assets can be equally complex, particularly where values fluctuate or selling could create an unexpected tax liability. Where specialist valuation or tax advice is needed, Sharp works alongside trusted financial advisers so decisions are based on sound evidence rather than assumptions.
Trusts can add a further layer, particularly family, discretionary or offshore trusts where one spouse is a beneficiary. How a trust is treated depends on the degree of control or benefit involved rather than simply where it is held, so Sharp advises early on how any trust interest should be approached as part of the wider settlement.
International assets and cross-border divorce
If you're dealing with assets, businesses, or family circumstances that span more than one country, it's understandable to wonder how those international elements could affect your divorce. Early advice can make a significant difference, helping you understand where your case should be handled and how overseas assets can best be protected.
Sharp Family Law acts in cross-border divorces involving overseas assets, businesses, or spouses living outside England and Wales. Whether the case involves property abroad, an overseas business interest, or accounts in another jurisdiction, one of the first questions is often where the divorce should take place.
Jurisdiction depends on factors such as residence and domicile, each of which can carry different legal and tax considerations. Our guide on getting a UK divorce when you live overseas provides further detail on this issue, and why it’s important to get it right. Where a case genuinely spans multiple countries, Sharp works closely with trusted lawyers in the relevant jurisdictions to ensure overseas assets are handled properly.
Spousal maintenance in high-income divorces
Spousal maintenance can become an important part of a high-income divorce where there's a significant difference in each spouse's income. Sharp Family Law advises on both interim maintenance, which helps manage day-to-day finances while a settlement is being reached, and longer-term arrangements. Unlike child maintenance, there is no fixed formula. Instead, the court considers each person's needs, resources, and earning capacity.
It's also important to understand how maintenance fits alongside a clean-break settlement. A clean break is generally intended to end ongoing financial ties between former spouses, so any continuing maintenance needs to be considered carefully rather than assumed to continue indefinitely.
Ways to resolve a high net worth divorce
Sharp Family Law takes time to understand your circumstances before recommending the approach best suited to your situation.
- One Couple, One Solicitor, (also known as Resolution Together), the joint-representation approach Sharp helped pioneer in Bath, offers couples a single, shared source of legal guidance. It suits lower-conflict cases; where assets are contested or interests diverge, Sharp will advise on a more suitable route.
- Collaborative law works well when both people want to reach an agreement without going to court, through a series of structured meetings with their solicitors present throughout.
- Constructive negotiation follows a similar philosophy in a round-table setting, with the aim of reaching an out-of-court settlement.
- Court litigation comes into play only when it becomes necessary, with the same care and robust representation as any other route.
Why clients choose Sharp Family Law
Making confident decisions in a complex financial case takes experience, and that's what underpins Sharp Family Law's approach. Since 2008, Sharp Family Law has helped clients across Bath navigate high-value divorces, while founder Richard Sharp brings more than 35 years' experience. That depth of knowledge also means understanding the local courts, the community, and the practical questions clients often don't realise they need to ask.
Our experience is recognised independently too. Sharp is ranked the top-rated family law solicitor in Bath by ThreeBestRated, achieving a 4.9 score following its 117/120 inspection.
Sharp is also the only Bath firm to offer a confidential online questionnaire before your first meeting. This means your solicitor can begin understanding your circumstances in advance, giving you the opportunity to explain your situation privately, at your own pace, and helping make those first conversations more focused and productive.
Meet the team behind that experience: Richard Sharp, Sarah Young, and Hannah Abbott.
Speak to our Bath divorce solicitors
Finding your way through a high net worth divorce doesn't mean having all the answers from the outset. It starts with a conversation about your circumstances, your priorities, and the future you're trying to protect. When you're ready, our confidential online form lets you take that first step in your own time.
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