Margaret Hatwood, Partner
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Comment on the barrister’s ex wife case Vaughan v Vaughan: A First Wives Club?
• The Court of Appeal has ruled after a long running battle that Mrs Vaughan should receive a further substantial lump sum of £215,000 of from her ex husbands a leading barrister, some 25 years after the divorce, 29 years after they separated.
• Mr Vaughan who is now 71 had argued that his former wife should no longer receive maintenance, which was £27,000 per annum and last year the High Court agreed with him.
• Mrs Vaughan argued that she needed a total income of £48,000 per annum to avoid financial hardship.
• However the Court of Appeal disagreed with the High Court and decided Mrs Vaughan needed extra income, despite having received an inheritance of £770,000. The Court decided that she should receive £14,000PA which would be capitalised to a lump sum of £215,000.
Margaret Hatwood Partner in Anthony Gold’s family law department comments:
“The only good news for Mr Vaughan is that his former wife will not be able to make any future financial claims. For some time now the courts have had the power in variation of maintenance cases to order that the maintenance be converted into a lump sum which then terminates the financial claims between the parties.
Many features of this case seem unfair. Mr Vaughan and his ex wife only lived together for 13 years. His second marriage was already of 25 years duration. Mr Vaughan’s barrister Mr Mostyn QC had argued that the ex wife was staking a claim to her ex’s pension pot which had been built up after the divorce and that the pension fund should be available to support Mr Vaughan and his second wife. The Court of Appeal disagreed with this and said it was illogical to for the judge to attribute one half of the pension income to the second wife. The judge had been wrong in giving the second wife priority over the first. Hatwood says that the Court of Appeal made it clear also said it should not go as far as to give priority to the first wife either”.
For further information email Margaret Hatwood or call 020 7940 4000.
