Last week you might have read about an important decision in the Supreme Court, where an ex – wife has been allowed to make a financial claim against her ex – husband, even though they divorced decades ago.
The couple married in 1981, had one child, and split up in 1984. They divorced in 1992. At the time, they apparently didn’t bother to get any financial order from the court; neither had any money, and it didn’t seem necessary. This turned out to be a big mistake on the part of the ex- husband, who went on to become a multi – millionaire businessman.
In 2011 the ex-wife began to try to extract more money from her ex – husband, and she has now been given permission to apply. It is not a foregone conclusion that she will get anything, but she has been given a strong hint that she might get enough to buy a house. In addition, the husband has been ordered to pay her legal costs, as well as his, which at the moment total around £500,000. He is not a happy man.
There are some misunderstandings about why the Judges agreed with the ex – wife. It seems very unfair on the ex – husband, and many people are wondering if all ex – spouses might be able to make a claim years after the divorce.
Is this relevant to you?
If:
– You are married, or divorced. (Not just living together) and
– You did not get any kind of final order setting out who gets what when you divorced
You need to get some specialist legal advice from a family lawyer, especially if one of you is wealthier than the other.
Generally, if there is no final financial order, after a divorce, either person can ask the court for a financial settlement. However, if you have remarried, you might not be able to make a claim. The Court will decide if it is fair to make an award. You might have to try mediation first, and there is now no Legal Aid to help you. It is possible, however, to get an order that the wealthier person pays the legal costs for the poorer person, as happened here.
In the end, as with this case, it will be up to the Judge to decide if any settlement is fair.