May 2020 #196 – Law Journals

Non-matrimonial assets: Looking to the future

Ellen Walker discusses a case concerned with multiple income streams, the application of the sharing principle and the approach to top-up maintenance orders ‘The court does not use the statutory formula when awarding top-up child maintenance, but will look a range of factors, including the child’s needs.’ In CB v KB [2019], Mostyn J provided …

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Declarations of marital status: A valid exception

Nicola Caffery explains the basis on which the court in MM v NA was able to recognise a marriage which took place in a non-sovereign state ‘The law of England and Wales looks to the country in which the marriage took place to determine if the marriage is formally valid under the domestic law of …

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Financial provision: Not-so-special

Catherine Doherty examines the approach to stellar contributions and whether such arguments are now largely obsolete ‘The Court of Appeal felt that it could only determine that there was not such a disparity in the parties’ respective contributions that it would be inequitable to disregard them when deciding what award to make.’ The decision of …

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Brexit: The way ahead

Teertha Gupta QC theorises as to potential scenarios for international children law cases post-Brexit ‘It seems obvious that there will be a relatively hard Brexit as far as family law is concerned, followed by a re-drafting of international child law treaties over time.’ At the end of last year, from an international child lawyer’s perspective, …

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International children: Finding the right path

Nicola Meldrum considers the correct approach where the 1996 Hague Convention applies and the court of another state has already made orders ‘The legal framework governing the enforcement of an existing order and that governing an order under Art 11, 1996 Hague Convention are different.’ The Court of Appeal decision in Re I-L (children) (1996 …

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TOLATA 1996: A holistic approach

Mark Pawlowski looks at how the courts calculate the parties’ beneficial shares when events post-acquisition give rise to a claim to an enlarged share in the jointly owned family home ‘The courts take a holistic approach to the question of the assessment of the parties’ respective shares, so that, although financial contributions play an important …

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Pensions: Lessons to be learnt

Andrew Smith highlights the first reported decision in which the Pension Advisory Group report has impacted on the approach of the court to pension assets ‘In the first reported case to feature specific reference to the PAG report, the judge drew heavily on the opinions within that report, stating that it should “be treated as …

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Non-disclosure: Double trouble

Frederick Tatham analyses the unusual circumstances that led to a final order being set aside twice on the basis of material non-disclosure ‘An order will only be set aside for innocent non-disclosure if the court would have made a substantially different order if the relevant facts had been disclosed.’ In what is believed to be …

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