ONS figures show 'changing dynamic' in British homes It can, however, impact on parental finances, including the issues that can arise when a a divorce settlement is being negotiated. In my experience, divorces involving middle-aged spouses - or "silver splitters," as they have become known - feature deliberations on one spouse's need to provide for adult children on a relatively regular basis. One parent - and it is usually the mother - will object because an adult child is still living there with her. Unlike young children, whose welfare and needs are considered an important factor when their parents divorce, the courts do not usually take the needs of adult children into account. If their parents have sufficient assets, however, the issue of subsidising the living expenses of an adult child can be wrapped up in a generous interpretation of the needs of the parents with whom they live. Another issue regarding adult children which I have seen in cases which my colleagues and I have dealt with is an increase in the amount of animosity that occurs when their parents get divorced. They may feel obliged to take the side of either mum or dad - who might be looking after them financially - and that can make the divorce process longer and more unpleasant than it needs to be. Fiona Wood is a partner in family law at Pannone solicitors