Why take such a chance with your future?
When many young couples divorce they often have little or no financial assets. Having separated there are numerous drains on their limited financial resources such as the costs of setting up their new households and then there are the legal costs of getting the divorce. So when their lawyers write to them recommending that they have a Court Order to confirm that there is nothing to divide it just seems a waste of money. However, the recent Supreme Court decision in Vince v Wyatt [2015] UKSC 14 highlights the risks of not having a financial Order.
On 11 March 2015 the Supreme Court made a landmark decision to allow a wife’s financial application to be heard by the Family Court despite the parties having been divorced for over 22 years.
The parties’ had no significant assets during the marriage and lived a simple life. They had one child together and the wife had a child from a previous relationship. In the early 1990s there were divorce proceedings but the only surviving document was the Decree Absolute made on 26 October 1992.
The parties went on to meet new partners and have other children. The wife struggled financially whilst in the late 1990s the husband set up a business which subsequently led him to become a multi-millionaire.
The wife made an application to the Court for a substantial lump sum payment from the husband and, despite strong opposition from the husband who has spent hundreds of thousands of pounds fighting the wife’s application, the Supreme Court has decided it can be heard. The Family Court will now have to decide how much the wife should receive.
The case highlights the importance of having a Court Order even if you have nothing at the time of divorce. Without such an order you risk claims being made at a later stage if your financial circumstances change significantly, ie if you inherit or become wealthy by any other means. This case also demonstrates there is no time limit for such an application.
Why take such a chance with your future? Come and see Hine Solicitors for further advice on how you can protect yourself.
