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Divorce is often associated with younger couples, but Australian family lawyers are increasingly navigating the complexities that arise when relationships end after decades together, writes Michael Tiyce.
The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) figures show divorces increased by 4.1 per cent in 2025, with the median age at divorce reaching 47.3 years for men and 44.4 years for women. Pointing towards a rise in “grey divorce”, with Aussies ending marriages at an age when the financial consequences of separation can be particularly significant and nuanced.
For couples who have spent decades building careers, raising children, and accumulating wealth, separation is rarely as simple as dividing the family home.
When decades of wealth have to be untangled
The longer a relationship goes, often the more complex a web is built across finances, assets, and ownership.
By the time a couple reaches their 50s or 60s, they may have accumulated investment properties, businesses, shares, superannuation, trusts, inheritances, and other assets. Similarly, this also increases the likelihood of debts, financial arrangements involving adult children, and assets that may have changed significantly in value since they were acquired.
Here begins the challenge of not just identifying what the couple owns but how these assets were acquired, the contributions over the course of years or decades each person made, and the financial consequences of any proposed settlement.
Superannuation can be particularly important, particularly for someone approaching retirement, losing a significant portion of their superannuation or other retirement assets may leave limited time to rebuild their financial position. Similarly, retaining the family home may appear to provide stability, but it can come at the expense of other assets or leave one person with insufficient liquid funds to support themselves.
The settlement can reshape retirement
The financial consequences of separation later in life can extend well beyond the settlement itself.
A couple in their 30s may have decades of working life ahead of them to recover from a major financial change; however, there may be far less opportunity to rebuild wealth or increase super balances for someone approaching retirement. This makes it particularly important to look beyond the headline value of a settlement.
Two people receiving assets of broadly similar value may still have very different financial futures depending on the nature of those assets, their income-earning capacity, housing costs, and access to retirement savings.
There can also be significant tax considerations to consider. Selling or transferring certain assets as part of a settlement can have consequences that are not immediately apparent, which is why couples should understand the broader financial implications before agreeing to an arrangement.
Adult children and estate planning add another layer
Separation after decades together can also affect plans that extend beyond the couple themselves. Adult children may have received financial assistance from their parents, been included in family businesses or trusts, or been expecting to inherit particular assets, with long-established arrangements needing to be reconsidered when a relationship breaks down.
Estate planning is, therefore, another area not to be overlooked. Following separation, wills, powers of attorney, superannuation death benefit nominations, insurance policies, and trust structures may all need to be reviewed.
One of the biggest risks for mature couples is assuming that because they have been together for decades, they can simply reach an informal agreement and move on. While an amicable separation is certainly possible, an agreement that seems fair at the time may have significant consequences if the couple has not properly identified their assets, considered future needs, or understood the legal effect of the arrangement.
For couples separating later in life, there is often less room for financial mistakes as the decisions made during a property settlement can shape housing, retirement, and financial security for decades to come.
Divorce may mark the end of a marriage, but for older Australians, it can also mark the end of a financial partnership built over an entire adult life. The priority should be making sure both parties understand exactly what they are giving up, what they are retaining, and what their financial future will look like once the two lives that have been intertwined for decades become separate.
Michael Tiyce is the principal of Tiyce & Lawyers Family Law Specialists.
