Procedure: Not a dress rehearsal

Ellie Foster and Eleanor Cawthra highlight the issue of finality of judgments, the ability of a judge to change their mind and the submission of further evidence ‘Allowing disappointed litigants the impression that the court will accede easily to the introduction of fresh evidence after judgment, that they could have adduced at first instance had …
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Financial orders: Working capital

Lottie Tyler analyses when a spouse should expect an award on divorce to generate an income to meet their needs ‘If a judge is of the view that a party is likely to have capital in excess of their capital needs, then they must determine what level of income should be attributable to that capital.’ …
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Beneficial interests: A cautionary tale

Andrew Scott considers a case in which a successful appeal against an avoidance of disposition order did not alter a finding as to the beneficial ownership of a property ‘The absence of an application is not inevitably fatal to a section 37, MCA 1973 order… but in this case the way in which the order …
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Non-court dispute resolution: The removal of doubt

Julian Bremner describes a new project to use existing dispute resolution processes to resolve family law issues ‘The benefit to clients of the Certainty Project process is the level of expertise and collaboration between all the professionals in their case, a time frame that works for them and the knowledge that the matter will end …
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In practice: Theories in context

Andrew Baines examines decision making in the family courts, the meaning of justice and the role of the concepts of virtue and morality ‘If it is right that the gap between the law and day-to-day reality needs to be managed… and that justice is the appropriate tool used by the judge to bridge that gap, …
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Financial planning: Generation gap

Graeme Fraser and Mark Penston look at the legal and financial implications of funding through families ‘Assessing mortgage capacity is a more complicated exercise than it perhaps used to be. Lenders now look at what they perceive to be “affordable” to the borrowers.’ The scarcity of homes and the rapid increase in market values for …
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Leave to remain: Preparing for take-off

Chris Longbottom provides a recap of key considerations on an application to relocate a child to another jurisdiction, whether on a temporary or permanent basis ‘Where the application relates to a temporary removal, then different considerations will apply when compared to the considerations on an application for a permanent removal/relocation.’ I have found litigation relating …
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