Final Settlement - Court of Appeal Sees Sense

Wealthy builder Dennis North had a considerable shock recently when the court awarded his ex-wife Jean over £200,000 from him for financial support. While such settlements are by no means uncommon, the oddity was that the couple divorced in 1978 and the financial arrangements were finalised in 1981. Mr North, now 70, quite reasonably thought that would be the end of the matter - until he received a solicitor's letter four years ago indicating that she would be seeking further monies.

Mrs North had no source of income other than her settlement from Mr North, which included their matrimonial home and tenanted properties. She had had no paid employment since the couple’s split. She decided to emigrate to Australia, sold all her assets in the UK and moved to a well-to-do area of Sydney. However, her stay in the antipodes was not a happy one as her lifestyle and bad investments conspired to reduce her circumstances considerably and she returned to the UK. She therefore sought additional funds from Mr North and found the judge sympathetic. Despite agreeing that Mr North had no responsibility for his wife’s reduced circumstances, she was awarded £202,000, more than 25 years after the original settlement.

A rapid appeal to the Court of Appeal brought a restoration of common sense. The judges agreed that the award was unjustifiably large. Interestingly, however, the Court concluded that a further settlement, of a lesser amount, is appropriate and the sum has yet to be decided.

Lord Justice Thorpe commented that 'The prodigal former wife cannot hope to turn to a former husband in pursuit of a legal remedy’.