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 …
This post is only available to members.

Pre-Acquired Wealth: Counting contributions

Kirstie Gibson studies the courts’ approach to pre-acquired wealth in a long marriage ‘Pre-marital property should be taken into account because it represents a contribution made by one party unmatched by an equivalent contribution from the other party.’ In Charman v Charman [2007] the court said that for nearly five years, since White v White …
This post is only available to members.

Divorce And Trusts: What happens to the family silver?

Katharine Landells reviews Jones, the latest case to show the court’s attitude to inherited assets on divorce ‘The fact that wealth is inherited and not earned does not justify it being treated differently from wealth accrued during the marriage.’ Since the sea change in family law following White v White [2000], it has been a …
This post is only available to members.

Divorce And Trusts: Carcass of the golden goose

John Darnton discusses Robson, which has lessons for the management of family trusts ‘In Robson the estate had not been in the family ‘for generations’ but it was Mr Robson’s case that it had been his father’s intention to create a dynastic arrangement and not just a tax-efficient structure.’In October 2010 the Court of Appeal …
This post is only available to members.

Inherited Assets: Preserving for the future

Chris McIntosh reviews the courts’ approach where the marital assets are inherited as in the decision in Robson v Robson ‘Financial needs should be considered in conjunction with the s25 MCA 1973 factors, viewed through the prism of the available resources, which might not have remained at a consistent level throughout the relationship.’ The case …
This post is only available to members.