Chambers Blog

The Court of Appeal has ruled that a husband or wife who comes across documents showing that their spouse is concealing assets in divorce proceedings, can no longer use such documents. If the husband or wife has taken copies of such documents for the use of their legal advisors, it is unlawful and they must be handed back. It is not clear how far the use of any information derived from such documents may be restricted e.g. the mere existence of an undisclosed bank account.

This is in line with civil and criminal laws, but will make it more difficult to prove non-disclosure of assets in some matrimonial cases.

 Written by Rebecca Fitton-Brown, Barrister at New Walk Chambers specialising in Family Law.

One complicated issue that can arise in ancillary relief proceedings upon divorce is where the marriage's only major asset is a business run by one of the parties. A business is a good example of an asset that often cannot be divided in two by the court, but this can result in injustice where there are no other assets to distribute. In the recent case of H v H [2008] EWHC 935 (Fam) the High Court considered this conundrum, and emphasised that it is useful in this case to look at periodical payments, tied if appropriate to the wealth generated by the business. This can provide a party with a de facto income stream from the business with less interruption to the business than a division of its assets.

Written by Rebecca Fitton-Brown, Barrister at New Walk Chambers, specialising in Family Law.