A father has failed in his attempt to be awarded full custody of his son in a case made complicated by the Covid-19 pandemic. The father was a US citizen; the boy’s mother was British. The couple began a relationship in 2014 when the mother was working in the US. Their son was born in
A husband has failed in his attempt to use the impact of the Covid pandemic as a reason to have his divorce settlement set aside. The husband and his wife had reached a settlement on 12 March 2020, shortly before the UK ‘s first national lockdown. He was managing director of the family company, which
The Court of Appeal has reiterated that domestic abuse could mean far more than just violence and included behaviour that could affect the welfare of children even if they were not the direct victims. The issue arose in four conjoined appeals involving allegations of domestic abuse by one parent against the other. In giving judgments,
Separating couples wills soon be able to apply for £500 vouchers to pay for mediation to help them settle disputes without having to go to court. Mediation is often a quicker and cheaper way of resolving disputes, which can spare families the trauma of attending court and the impact this can have on children. It
The Family Court has ordered that two children who were wrongfully removed from Italy by their mother must be returned to their father in Rome. The father and mother had married in 1998 and their eldest son was born in England in 2008. The family moved to Italy in 2011 and their youngest son was
The High Court set out the principles that should apply when sharing family property in a divorce settlement. The case involved a couple who had been married for 33 years and had three adult children, who were independent. Both the wife and the husband had been independently wealthy before the marriage. The wife had non-matrimonial
The wishes of a 12-year-old boy were not enough to prevent him from being returned to his father, especially as it was likely that he had been unduly influenced by his mother. That was the decision of the Court of Appeal in a case involving a boy who was born in England and had lived
The High Court has ruled that a wife had not been entitled to access her husband’s private information during divorce proceedings. In giving the ruling, the judge warned couples not to resort to unlawful practices to gain an unfair advantage. The issue arose after the husband suspected that the wife had accessed and misused his
A wife has lost her appeal to reduce the amount her husband should be awarded from her pension fund as part of their divorce settlement. The husband and wife, who were aged 69 and 57 respectively, had been married for 20 years before separating. Following the separation, the wife and two children remained in the
While it is still too soon for any certainty and teething problems are likely to persist, it is possible to speculate and draw some current conclusions on the effect of Brexit on some areas of UK legal practice.