Hi,

I recently went through a property settlement with my ex. He was ordered by the court to pay me today. The orders clearly stated "the husband pay to the wife the sum of...".

However it appears he has delivered a cheque to my lawyer today , made out to my lawyer "on behalf of the wife" instead, which means another 5 - 7 days delay. Can he do that?

My lawyer has advised the funds will be placed in their trust until the cheque is cleared and then the balance (less any fees owed to them) will be forwarded to me. I am extremely angry about this as I did not agree to this. I thought the orders were very clear. Further, my lawyer has been extremely good at creating (unnecessary) things to do which I'm then billed for - when I have been very clear Im on a budget and only want the absolute necessities done, and only with my requesting it. To date I have paid all accounts in good faith but I am getting tired of paying out amounts which I have not solicited.

In retrospect I should have ceased my relationship with my lawyer once the court made the orders, some time ago. I assumed there would be no further action required of them

Please can you provide some guidance with respect to my questions above?

Many thanks

Optional Information:
State/Territory: victoria