Form E Questionnaires: What They Are, What to Ask, and How They Can Impact Your Financial Settlement

What is a Form E Questionnaire?

A Form E questionnaire, also called a financial remedy questionnaire, is a formal written document submitted to the Family Court during financial remedy proceedings. It contains specific questions directed at your spouse, asking them to explain, clarify, or provide additional evidence about their financial disclosure.

Under Rule 9.14(5) of the Family Procedure Rules 2010, both parties must file a questionnaire with the court, and serve it on the other party, at least 14 days before the First Appointment hearing.

In simple terms: if you think your spouse’s disclosure is incomplete, misleading, or leaves important questions unanswered, the questionnaire is the place to formally raise those concerns. While Form E is the foundation for disclosure, the questionnaire is designed to clarify the information contained.

To find out more about the basics of Form E, read our detailed guide here: Form E in Divorce: What it is, What it Covers, and What Happens Next.

When is a Questionnaire Used After Form E?

The questionnaire comes into play at a specific point in the financial remedy process. After both parties have exchanged Form E, each side has the opportunity to review the other’s disclosure and raise questions. Those questions must be filed with the court and served on the other party at least 14 days before the First Appointment.

At the First Appointment itself, the judge reviews both questionnaires and decides which questions are approved, which are disallowed, and the deadline by which answers must be provided. In my experience of high net worth financial remedy cases, the questions approved at that hearing — and how precisely they are drafted — often shape the entire trajectory of the case.

The questionnaire after Form E is not a one-shot opportunity. If significant new information emerges later, or if answers raise further concerns, the court can order additional disclosure. But getting it right first time is far more efficient and sends a clear signal about the strength of your case.

Why Does the Questionnaire Matter?

Form E requires “full, frank, and clear disclosure” of all financial circumstances. However, in practice, not everyone gets it right on first completion.  This can be down to genuine oversight, but in other cases it happens by design.

A strategically drafted financial remedy questionnaire can:

• Uncover hidden income, assets, or liabilities.
• Expose inflated outgoings or deflated valuations.
• Require documentary evidence to support claims made in Form E.
• Lay the groundwork for expert reports (such as business, house or pension valuations).
• Strengthen your position before the Financial Dispute Resolution (FDR) hearing.

In high net worth cases, where financial structures are often complex, the questionnaire after Form E is not just a formality. It is a critical legal tool.

What Questions Can You Ask?

Questions must be relevant and proportionate to the issues in your case. The court has discretion to disallow questions it considers unnecessary, oppressive, or a fishing exercise (a non-specific search for general, potentially damaging, information) without any genuine basis.

That said, in a complex divorce, legitimate areas for questioning after Form E include:

Income and employment

• Requests for payslips, P60s, and employment contracts.
• Explanation of bonuses, deferred compensation, or share options not fully declared.
• Queries around income from directorships or consultancy arrangements.

Property and real estate

• Clarification of valuations; particularly if they appear low.
• Evidence of beneficial ownership of properties held in other names.
• Queries about properties transferred in the years before separation.

Bank accounts and investments

• Requests for complete bank statements (typically dating back 12 months).
• Questions about withdrawals, transfers, or unexplained cash movements.
• Disclosure of all savings accounts, ISAs, and investment portfolios.

Pensions

• Requests for up-to-date Cash Equivalent Transfer Values (CETVs) from all schemes.
• Questions about any defined benefit pension not clearly identified in Form E.

Debts and liabilities

• Clarification of loans, particularly to or from family members.
• Evidence of liabilities claimed to reduce apparent net worth.

Complex Assets: Where the Questionnaire Becomes Even More Important

In divorces containing significant wealth, complex assets often become the main ‘battleground’. A standard Form E may not provide nearly enough detail to thoroughly capture all financials, which is where the questionnaire after Form E earns its keep.

Business Assets and Form E

If your spouse owns a business — whether a private company, partnership, or sole trader operation — you need much more than a headline figure or passing snapshot. Questions around business assets in Form E might include:

• Requests for three to five years of audited accounts.
• Discussions about director’s loans and how they are treated.
• Disclosure of retained profits or undistributed dividends.
• Details of related companies, subsidiaries, or associated interests.
• Whether the stated valuation was prepared by an independent expert.

Courts can order a jointly instructed forensic accountant or business valuation expert for clarification. The questionnaire is often the mechanism that triggers that process.

Trusts and Form E

If your spouse is named as a beneficiary (or trustee), trusts in Form E require careful examination. Offshore, family, and discretionary trusts are commonly used structures in high net worth families. The law requires disclosure of these interests, but the level of detail provided voluntarily is often minimal.

Questions around Form E and complex asset structures like trusts might cover:

• Full details of any trust in which your spouse has a beneficial or discretionary interest.
• Trust deeds, accounts, and correspondence with trustees.
• Distributions received in recent years.
• Whether assets were placed into trust before or after separation; and when exactly this was undertaken.

Courts can and do treat trust assets as a resource available to a party, particularly where they have effective control or a history of benefit.

To find out more about this topic, read our blog: Understanding Trusts in High Net Worth Divorce.

Strategic Use of the Financial Remedy Questionnaire in High-Value Cases

A well-timed, well-targeted questionnaire influences the whole case. Here is how experienced practitioners approach it strategically:

1. Timing Matters: Filing a precisely targeted questionnaire signals to both the other side and the court that you have studied the disclosure carefully and identified real gaps. It sets a serious tone early.
2. Don’t Over-ask: Courts are increasingly robust about proportionality. A long, unfocused questionnaire can backfire; questions may be disallowed, costs may follow, and you may appear to be on a fishing expedition rather than raising genuine concerns. A shorter, sharper questionnaire almost always lands better.
3. Use Questions to Trigger Expert Evidence: In cases involving business interests or complex asset structures, the questionnaire is often the driver of court-appointed experts. These typically include forensic accountants, surveyors, or actuaries. Framing your questions to highlight the need for expert input, rather than simply seeking documents, is a better approach.
4. Consider the FDR. Every question you ask now should serve a purpose at the Financial Dispute Resolution hearing or final hearing. Ask yourself: what evidence do I need to make my argument? Work backwards from there and remember that if a question does not serve that purpose, cut it.

This strategic knowhow is something a specialist high net worth family lawyer brings to the table, and it is often where the real value lies.

For more information about what happens when parties fail to disclose assets honestly, read our guide: Hiding Assets During Divorce in England and Wales: Penalties, Consequences, and How Courts Respond.

What Are the Rules Around the Questionnaire?

Length: Under Financial Remedies Court (FRC) guidance, questionnaires should generally be no more than four pages of A4 (12-point font, 1.5 line spacing). A longer questionnaire may be permitted only where the complexity of the case genuinely justifies it.

Proportionality: The court must be satisfied that questions are necessary and proportionate. Judges are actively case-managing financial remedy proceedings more tightly than ever.

Court approval: At the First Appointment, the judge will consider each party’s questionnaire and decide which questions must be answered, by when, and in what form. Not all of your questions may be approved, which is why precise, well-targeted drafting matters.

What Happens if Your Spouse Refuses to Answer?

Non-compliance is taken very seriously. If a party fails to answer approved questions, the court has significant powers, including:

• Adverse Inferences: The court may assume the worst about undisclosed information.
• Cost Orders: Penalising the non-compliant party financially.
• “Unless” orders: Requiring compliance by a set deadline or risking having their case struck out.
• Contempt of court: in persistent cases, custodial sentences have been imposed.

In Brown v Brown [2024], the court imposed a 19-day custodial sentence for persistent failure to comply with financial disclosure obligations. Again, non-disclosure carries real consequences.

FAQs About Financial Remedy Questionnaires

Can a Form E questionnaire be used outside of court proceedings??

Yes, these questionnaires are sometimes exchanged voluntarily during solicitor-led negotiations or mediation to assist with disclosure. However, they carry the most weight, and are most enforceable, when part of formal court proceedings.

How long does a spouse have to respond to a questionnaire?

The court will set a specific deadline at the First Appointment, typically 28 days. Extensions may be agreed or ordered where questions are complex or involve third-party documents.

What if I think my spouse is hiding assets offshore?

This is a serious concern and should be raised urgently with your solicitor. The court can order disclosure of overseas assets and, in appropriate cases, authorise freezing injunctions to prevent asset dissipation. Forensic accountants can be appointed to investigate complex or offshore structures, as explained in our blog: Offshore Accounts and Divorce: What Happens with Overseas Assets?

Can questions cover assets held in someone else’s name?

Yes, if there are reasonable grounds to believe that assets nominally held by a third party (such as a family member or business associate) are in fact available to your spouse, this can be explored through the questionnaire process.

What if new financial information comes to light after the questionnaire has been answered?

If significant new information emerges, you can apply to the court for further disclosure. Courts take a dim view of deliberate concealment, and any settlement reached on the basis of false disclosure can be set aside.

Take Control of Your Financial Settlement

The questionnaire after Form E is one of the most powerful — and sometimes underused — tools available to you in financial remedy proceedings. Drafted well, it protects your position, exposes gaps in your spouse’s disclosure, and lays the groundwork for a fair outcome. Drafted poorly, it can be disallowed, ignored, or used against you.

At Lowry Legal, we specialise in high net worth divorce and financial remedy cases across Manchester, the North West, and wider UK. We know how to ask the right questions. And how to get answers to the most difficult ones.

If you would like to discuss your case in confidence, contact our team today for an initial consultation.

This article provides general information about Form E questionnaires and financial disclosure in England and Wales. It should not be relied upon as legal advice. For guidance specific to your circumstances, consult a qualified family law solicitor.