Forensic Accountancy: Family fortunes

Kathryn Britten and Annette Barker set out the role of the forensic accountant in analysing financial information ‘The days of a forensic accountant being appointed as an expert witness solely to opine on one or both of the parties’ financial positions at the trial stage are long gone.’ While the world’s economic landscape is ever-changing, …
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International Focus: Life and death

Annmarie Gosling and Alvaro Iraizoz Reclusa consider international aspects of pre-marriage financial planning ‘The family courts in England and Wales have a notoriously broad remit in terms of the factors they can take into account when exercising the discretion to make financial orders.’ Pre-nuptial agreements are a topic on which one might think there is …
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Guest Editorial: Love and marriage

Sofie Hoffman assesses the current state of play with trusts and divorce ‘The judge decided that the wealth of the couple was not the product of their endeavours; the husband’s inherited wealth was non-matrimonial and so the sharing principle should not apply.’According to the latest statistics for marriage and divorce in England and Wales (2009 …
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International Focus: Binding issues

Suzanne Kingston and Amy Royce-Greensill summarise the current position on pre-nuptials and set out a comparison of the approach in other jurisdictions ‘When considering a pre-nuptial agreement, the court should take all of the circumstances of the case into account from the basis that each case will turn on its own facts.’ This is the …
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Inheritance Act: Until death do us part

Sian Hodgson and Julia Thackray consider claims under the Inheritance Act 1975 when drafting prenuptial and cohabitation agreements ‘A surviving spouse is entitled to seek such financial provision as would be reasonable in all the circumstances of a case for a spouse to receive, whether or not that provision is required for maintenance.’ One thing …
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Child Support: Ties that bind

Emma Mould discusses options when dealing with child support issues ‘A contract can clearly only come about where the parties can agree the terms and it will need to be carefully crafted to have the desired effect/s. This will undoubtedly take time and expertise to put together so it is not necessarily a quick, cheap …
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Law Reform: Changing times

Lucy Loizou and Hannah Budd set out the potential options for marital agreements as considered in the Law Commission’s consultation paper ‘Some European jurisdictions do not allow couples to opt out by agreement of their obligations to ‘maintain’ one another after a divorce and a marital agreement can relate only to what would be perceived …
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International Focus: Crossing borders

Jonathan Harris considers the European and international aspects of Granatino v Radmacher and its aftermath ‘The so-called Brussels II bis Regulation normally requires an English court to entertain divorce proceedings in a broad range of circumstances, and has largely stripped the English courts of the discretion to weed out cases more appropriately heard overseas.’ Granatino …
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EU And Succession Laws: Are we there yet?

Richard Frimston gives an update on the progress of EU regulations affecting cross-border estates ‘There is some uncertainty as to whether England and Wales would recognise separate regimes in relation to movables and immovables, which would be valid under the Hague Convention.’The European Commission (the Commission) thinks that cross-border inheritance tax issues are a growing …
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