Divorce/employment issue. Further opinions needed please!

[springaroundthecorner]

I'm in the middle of a very nasty divorce. Brief background, I worked in and helped set up a successful business run by my stbx and one other person. It is joint owned by them and I am a share holder. 3 years ago stbx basically forced me out of my full time job there saying it didnt work being spouses in a business and we both needed more space etc etc. For the sake of marriage, or so I thought, I left. I continued to be paid a small salary as does his partners spouse who also does not work in the business. The real reason stbx wanted me out was so he could start an affair unimpeded by me. By the time I had proof of the affair last summer he had installed OW into a full time position in the business. She had worked for the business when I was there on a short term contract and then left and that was how he met her and it was just after that he got me out. She was back working there about 9 months after I left. (She had gone off to do a college course).

We havent started the financial negotiations yet as we are waiting on accounts/valuation of the business which should be available shortly. Last week he sent me an email asking me to resign from my position in the business. My solicitor doesnt seem to think that it is a problem for me to do this and suggested I do. I am furious about this (not with her) and think it would be a good bargaining tool in future negotiations. Whatever advice she gives I feel so strongly about it and the way I have been treated I wont do this until I absolutely have to. I also feel I should be entitled to some redundancy money. I have not had another job since leaving the business and despite taking a new qualification I have never found any work I wanted to do. Finances werent an issue before the split and I had other interests to pursue. I am early 50's. I am suffering from severe anxiety now and not in a place to be chasing jobs.


I would love some other opinions please.

[Lexilicious]

no experience of anything like this, but if you're thinking constructive dismissal you need to get an employment lawyer rather than trying to get your divorce lawyer to deal with it.

What has happened with the other spouse and did you both have a contract detailing an actual role?

[curiousparent]

Just wanted to say that I am really sorry that you are going through all this.

Personally I do not think I would resign either, certainly not at the moment even if you have to eventually.

I suppose in theory you could say you were entitled to redundancy but I guess it's a bit complicated as you did effectively quit (although for good reasons) and yet you still have a small salary so I suppose you have just amended your contract really.

As a side issue I am not sure that it is legal to pay salaries to people who don't really do any work and the HMRC would take a bit of a dim view of this but I guess you could argue that you were on part time hours but asked not to go in so still effectively employed but on gardening leave?

What shareholding do you have in the business? Obviously any settlement that you had as a severance pay would effect the overall pot and possibly therefore reduce your payment anyway although it would still work out more in total for you.

Do you think your solicitor is the right one for the job? And also is there a shareholders agreement?

Sorry so many questions!

[springaroundthecorner]

She is still being paid. I have never had a contact (that I have ever seen anyway!) although funnily enough stbx's email mentioned my contact "no longer applies as I no longer have a role in the business". Well, I am still a shareholder and nothing has changed for three years business/work wise other than he has left me.

[springaroundthecorner]

Sorry should have added if the request to resign had come officially from say the accountant or the two partners I would have viewed it differently but just a fairly threatening email from him is different. I told him to contact my solicitor about it. I have a funny feeling he may not, and it was just another bit of his nasty attempted annihilation of me.

[springaroundthecorner]

Yes, think I could argue that I was on gardening leave for sure. That is certainly how it felt. I never wanted to quit my job and really loved it until he got nasty.

I know he would argue that I did some work on his behalf from home speaking to clients etc and now I don't. Funnily enough several clients have been so disgusted by what has happened they have been tempted to go elsewhere and I have been busy telling them not to as it is certainly not in my interest!

I know I cant hang on to it for ever and I dont want to. I do however want what is right and what I should be owed.

I'm very happy with my solicitor other than this issue which I dont think she thinks is important and I can see that. It is important to me though morally as I feel emotionally and financially shafted basically.

[curiousparent]

I do think that as Lexi said that you need a separate employment type solicitor for this aspect - it is a separate issue and that is why I asked if you were happy with her. Perhaps if your solicitor is part of a larger firm they may have someone else there who deals with employment, or get an opinion elsewhere.

Even if it doesn't affect your overall position I wouldn't make life easy for your stbx by quitting. I would hold onto every bit of power that you have, and being employed and on the books is a bit of power as is still being a shareholder. BTW you didn't indicate your shareholding - just interested if you are a minor shareholder? (As I am where I work and am also a company director).

[springaroundthecorner]

Sorry, I didnt mean to not mention the shareholder % - only 5%.

That is exactly what I thought curiousparent about holding onto power. I know that this money is ligitimate for the spouse/partner and I think the OW is fancying it for herself or he is fancying giving it to her.

I dont really want to spend any more money on an employment solicitor as I feel I will have to give it up at some stage. I intend to go for a clean break divorce as want stbx totally out of my life but whilst all the negotiations are going on I want to keep that power.

[curiousparent]

I think you are being very sensible and very realistic.

I would definitely not make life easy for them.

Like me you don't have a really big say with it being a minor shareholding, but OTOH it does mean that you could play more on the being forced out of your job thing - it's not like as if you could have voted to hold yourself in the job or anything. And I'm not suggesting that you therefore need to actually claim a dismissal, but just keep the job and kind of hold onto the fact that it is something else in your favour, another tool to negotiate with when the settlement is agreed - something else that needs to be factored into the whole equation if you like.

BTW how is the valuation of the company being carried out? That is really important I would say as it's going to make such a difference to what your 5% is worth.

Have you looked up community legal advice? You may be eligible for some free initial legal advice - I don't think this is the same as legal aid (but am prepared to be corrected!).

[springaroundthecorner]

Thanks. Its so good to be able to run it past some other minds, and nice to know I am on the right track.

The initial valuation is being done by the accountant for the business. I know this sounds horrendous but I've taken some advice from anaccountant friend and also someone else he has actually done a business valuation for. I think he is going to be fair but equally I am not going to just take his valuation but get someone else to look over it too. It will be money well spent I feel. I've no idea how I can be paid out of it but the accountant is going to come up with some proposals. I have a feeling I will be back here once there are some figures to considered for some more sound advice.

[olgaga]

I definitely wouldn't resign, and I would definitely see a specialist employment lawyer.

[springaroundthecorner]

I will look into it olgaga. I might start with the community legal advice mentioned earlier in the thread.

[curiousparent]

I would definitely be getting a further valuation other than the one offered by the company accountant. It should really be one by someone independent, no matter how much the company accountant is trying to appear to be fair they will intend to have a long term relationship with the company.

I have seen this from experience (not myself, but a previous company I worked for and where I was the internal company accountant and the external accountants/auditors did the valuation, as you are saying will happen in your case). Fortunately the ex wife didn't accept what she was told would be her share and she found a solicitor who really turned things around for her.

[Collaborate]

Entering into a compromise agreement for unfair dismissal is a good way of getting up to £30k out of a company tax free.

[springaroundthecorner]

curious I dont want to out myself by revealing too much about the business but wonder how much specialist knowledge of a particular type of business would a further valuer need to have? The existing accountant is very specialised and is regarded as an expert in the area the business specialises in. Would I need someone of the same experience in order for his valuation to look as credible?

Collaborate wow, thats food for thought.....My head is spinning. How you would use this fact to your advantage if you were advising me?

[springaroundthecorner]

babybarrister thanks for that. I wrote my reply and then wandered off and just posted. You have answered my question. That is good news that it can all be sorted out in one package as it were.

[springaroundthecorner]

Hi again. I havent received a payslip since October despite asking for them and after the email I talked about I strongly suspected that stbx had taken me off the payroll anyway. I contacted the external accountant (from whom I have a letter stating he is my accountant for tax purposes) and asked him to find out if I was still being paid and what are my years earnings to date. He has just sent me this information and I am still being paid and stbx has never contacted my solicitor about it. So it was totally hot air.

Moving on from that the external accountant has informed me that he has sent the practice valuation to stbx's solicitor but he refuses to tell me what the valuation is, and now I have seen a letter today saying the accountant "predicts" stbx's net income from the business will reduce in the next year. What a surprise.[sceptical] but still no financial statement being even mentioned never mind produced but a plead of poverty "our client is stretched to the limit".

I think I am going to ask my solicitor to issue proceedings as I feel this is never going to get anywhere otherwise. I dont want to stay in the FMH and would be much happier moving to a smaller place with my one child still at home and reducing outgoings for the "stretched to the limit" stbx. I want to rent as it will give me time to think, decide what I want to do when dc finishes school etc. What I want to know is would it be detrimental to negotiations to reveal this renting idea now? Or should I just look for the cost of a smaller house or just go for as much as I can get and not reveal my hand as it were?

Despite all that is going on I want to be "collaborative" but mediation is not an option as DV trial is pending. My sol does too. Its crazy for 2 of us to live in a too big house, spending so much on heating and council tax when I just want to get out of it and move on with my life and save money at the same time. They are just stalling, stalling, stalling. The wording of his solicitors letters and mine are soo different. His bloke sounds as much as a bollocks as his client. AND he is down as being a collaborative lawyer!

[springaroundthecorner]

Bump.

First financial hearing is set for the end of June. I havent received any pay slips since last October and now I havent received my P60.

Any suggestions as to what I should do?