Do I have permission to access or give my solicitors financial information belonging to my spouse during our divorce?

As family lawyers we are often given documents which do not belong to our client and which are being presented to us to demonstrate that either a spouse is not being completely honest about their financial position or they innocently thought they could pass it on as they once had permission to access it.  If you are going through divorce proceedings, you need to be aware of the rules around accessing documents that belong to your spouse.

Whilst you are going through the divorce process, you and your spouse will either voluntarily agree to disclose your financial information to one another or you may be ordered by the Court to do so. This is essential when negotiations take place around the division of your assets and income. However, you can only disclose documents which belong to you. Historically, there were special rules for married couples, which meant you could ‘help yourself’ to documents which belonged to your spouse, without their consent and your lawyers could copy the documents and send the originals back. However this is no longer the case and we now have case law which states that  there is no exception to the usual rules surrounding confidential information and if one were to “snoop” through their spouse’s information without their consent, you would not be able to rely on using that information during the divorce proceedings. At worst, you could even face criminal penalties.

Therefore, if you are thinking about checking your spouse’s laptop, or interfering with their post, without their knowledge or consent – think again! Your solicitor will have no other choice but to notify your spouse’s solicitor that you have accessed their information, we will not be able to rely on it and your actions may lead to further scrutiny.

When can I legitimately access my spouse’s information?

• Court processes, for example, by requesting disclosure in a questionnaire, or obtaining an order from the court specifically requesting disclosure.
• Looking at the outside of envelopes to see which companies are writing to your spouse so you can ask legitimate questions about assets.
• Looking at your spouse’s financial papers and other documents that are open and freely accessible, e.g. papers on the kitchen table, but you should not pass the documents onto your solicitors or take copies.

What You Must Not Do

• Steal documents (even those in rubbish bins).
• Interfere with post.
• Break into a locked cupboard, filing cabinet or briefcase to gain access to information or documents.
• Make surreptitious copies of confidential materials.
• Download or copy information from your spouse’s computer or phone.
• Send copies of documents that have wrongly come into your possession to any third party, including your solicitor.

If you have any concerns around whether you can or cannot access certain information, you must discuss this with your solicitor first.

Speak to our Family Law experts

Should you wish to discuss anything regarding the divorce process, children, the marital finances or separation if unmarried then please contact a member of the family team at IBB, at familylaw@ibblaw.co.uk or 03456 381 381.