Full and Frank Disclosure: Everything to Know + What Is Form E?

By Partner and Head of Family Law, Joanna Toloczko

We understand how intimidating it can be to be up against full and frank disclosure, more particularly a Form E during the legal process of your case. 

That being said, we have explained it easily for you to understand what is expected during this process in our divorce financial disclosure guide.

What is a Form E?

The Form E is the form prescribed by the court for parties to financial remedy proceedings to use to disclose their personal circumstances, assets, income and liabilities. 

It is also used by solicitors as a precursor to negotiations, prior to the issue of court proceedings, as it is the most effective way to gather comprehensive financial information.  

It is crucial that in completing Form E accurately, you understand what is necessary, mediators use the Form E in property and finance mediations and for reference, it can be found here on the government site.  

The Importance of Completing the Form E Correctly

If you are required to complete a Form E for the likes of financial declaration in divorce, it is very important that you complete the form accurately.  Failure to provide full and accurate disclosure may result in any order the court makes being set aside. 

If you are found to have been deliberately untruthful when completing the form, criminal proceedings may be brought against you for fraud under the Fraud Act 2006.  

The contents of the form must be confirmed by a statement of truth. Proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against a person who makes a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth. 

Top Tips for Completing the Form E

The Form E runs to 30 pages and requires a large number of documents to be attached to it. At first glance, this can seem daunting.  

However, it just needs to be broken down, so here are some tips for Form E in divorce.

It may be that you have been asked to complete a first draft of your Form E with a view to your solicitor preparing the final document or it may be that you are preparing the Form yourself.

Top tips for completing the Form E are as follows.

#1 Schedule Time to Deal with the Form E Completion

During a divorce, financial documentation like Form E is not something that can be done within a few minutes, whilst you juggle other tasks.  

We recommend scheduling two, two-hour slots – one slot to gather the documents and the other slot to complete the form. 

#2 Turn to Page 29 at the Back of the Form First  

This page contains a checklist of documents which are required to accompany the Form E.  Work through the list and gather together the documents.  You will need information from the documents to complete the form.  

You may need to apply for some of the documents, for example a valuation of the family home and your pension cash equivalent value.

The list includes the following:-

• A valuation and mortgage statement for the family home and any other properties;
• Copies of statements for the last 12 months for all of your personal bank, building society and national savings accounts;
• Latest statement or dividend counterfoil relating to any investments;
• A surrender valuation for relevant life insurance policies;
• A recent statement showing the cash equivalent value of each of your pensions;
• your P60 for the last financial year together with your last three payslips and a P11D, if you receive benefits in kind; 
• copies of your tax returns and assessments for the last two years;
• If you are a business owner, you must provide copies of the business accounts for the last two financial years together with an estimate of the current value of the business.  

There may be other documents that are helpful to confirm your financial position.

#3 It is always better to give too much information than not enough

 If you have a solicitor, they will sift and edit the information on your behalf. Bear in mind that one day you may be cross-examined on the contents of the Form E – an innocent omission could damage your credibility at a final hearing.

If you are preparing a first draft of the Form E for use by your solicitor, my recommendation would be to ensure that you provide all necessary information and documents together and promptly. 

If you do not do this, your solicitor will have to review the Form E and write to you regarding the missing information and documents. Most solicitors charge on a time basis. Therefore, the more times your solicitor has to review the Form E and write to you, the higher your fees will be. 

#4 Remember, the Form E Is the Form for You to Provide Disclosure Regarding Your Financial Circumstances.  

You do not need to complete information regarding any assets which are solely owned by your spouse, nor do you need to complete any information regarding their income and/or liabilities. The form should not be used to set out your case.

With regard to your monthly income needs, we would suggest that you start by going through your bank statements and listing all of the regular direct debit payments. You will then need to assess other outgoings for things such as food, clothing, cleaning materials, toiletries etc on an average basis.  Finally, consider whether there are any monthly expenses which you still pay for in cash.  

Most solicitors will have a template budget form to help you. 

#5 Always be realistic when assessing your income needs

Judges favour parties whose plans are realistic and sensible.  Do not put together a monthly budget which exceeds the family income during the time you were together.  On the other hand, do not forget or underestimate items.  

Please provide all figures on either a monthly or annual basis. Do not mix monthly and annual figures.  

Get in Touch If You Need Help with the Form E

Well-prepared Forms E will enable the professionals involved in your case to fully understand the family finances and will aid negotiations and early settlement of your case. 

Whilst preparing a Form E can be a daunting prospect, it is always worth spending the time and effort to produce an accurate and comprehensive document. Get in touch with us at BBS Law for help with this and ensure everything is compliant and in order, from Form E statement of truth to Form E asset disclosure.