Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Spring 2024 #194The deceased died intestate in 2020 with an estate worth around £120,000. He had married the claimant in January 1993, and they had a daughter, the defendant, in November 1993. They had an unhappy marriage and little family life, although they all continued to live together. In 2014, the deceased transferred the matrimonial home from his sole name to the joint names of him and the defendant as beneficial joint tenants, such that on his death his share of the property passed to the defendant. The property was worth around £450,000. In 2017, the claimant brought proceedings against the dec...
Nahanni Simcox considers no-fault divorce and whether the reforms might increase the attractiveness of England and Wales as a divorce jurisdiction It is imperative that parties with cross-jurisdictional assets and interests carefully consider the jurisdiction in which they issue divorce or dissolution proceedings. Following the introduction of ‘no-fault’ divorce on 6 April 2022, it will …
Continue reading "Divorce: Opening the floodgates?"
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Marwa Hadi-Barnes outlines the changes to divorce and dissolution with the advent of no-fault divorce, including procedural considerations Service via email is a default method under the DDSA 2020 changes, but where an application is served by email, a notice confirming such service must also be sent to the respondent’s postal address. From 6 April …
Continue reading "Divorce: Starting afresh"
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Lottie Tyler analyses the requirements for a divorce to be recognised as an overseas divorce in transnational cases The specificity as to the institution of the proceedings taking place in the same country in which the divorce was obtained is the primary focus of the relevant case law and the reason why there are some …
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Antonia Barker explores the set aside of a decree of divorce and the strict procedural requirements to be followed A decree absolute is a judgment which is definitive of a person’s status and they, and the rest of the world, must be able to rely upon it, as so many of an individual’s legal and …
Continue reading "Divorce: A limited power"
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Wills & Trusts Law Reports | Spring 2019 #174A company was incorporated by the husband and a friend in 1978 as equal shareholders. The husband and wife started living together in 1986, and married in 1989. At this point, the husband acquired 99% of the shares and the wife 1%. They separated in 2015.
On a wife’s application for a financial remedy order, the judge found that the capital assets were £182m in properties and pension funds, and 100% of the shares in a private company, which he valued at £221m before tax and costs of sale. He found that 80% of the company’s value was marital property, by applying a straight-line ap...
Michael Gouriet and Natalie O’Shea examine the government’s proposals regarding no-fault divorce and question whether sufficient consideration has been given to the wider implications of reform ‘It is fundamentally important to ensure that the changes do not unwittingly herald in a new era in which divorces are obtained quickly, but with more damage caused to …
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Oliver Auld gives the lowdown on what happens to trusts in the event of a divorce ‘Trustees need to be aware of not only the range of orders the family courts can make in relation to trust assets, but also the strategies they should potentially be adopting in the best interest of their beneficiaries, both …
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John Oxley examines the wider implications of the Supreme Court decision in Owens v Owens ‘The Supreme Court considered, but ultimately, rejected, that the court at first instance had wrongly thought that there needed to be a causal link between the behaviour and the breakdown, finding that it is clear that s1, MCA 1973 does …
Continue reading "Divorce: No way out"
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Lottie Tyler looks at the law on the recognition of an overseas divorce and the court‘s interpretation in a case involving issues as to sharia law and notice of proceedings ‘To be recognised, a divorce obtained through legal proceedings has to be effective under the law of the country in which it was obtained.‘ In …
Continue reading "Recognition of overseas divorce: Not common knowledge"
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