Tuesday 27 May 2014

Top Judge recommends court-free divorce

Sir James Munby, the UK's most senior family law judge, has recently said that couples should be able to get a divorce simply by signing a form at the register office.  In a radical move, he said consenting couples should be able to end their marriage without the approval of a judge.

Whilst it is not always necessary to attend court in person, every divorce in the UK currently has to be assessed and approved by a judge.  These new proposals would do away with that process, with break-ups simply being recorded by a registrar in the same way as births, marriages and deaths.

Sir James also proposed a law that would see cohabiting couples being treated as though they were married after having lived together for a set number of years.

He said that in some countries divorce which is by consent and where there are no children is treated in a simply administrative manner "and it seems to work".  He did not advocate this system where there was no consent or where children were involved.

Any changes to divorce laws would need parliamentary legislation, and Sir James hasn't even run his ideas past ministers as yet, so they're not likely to come into practice any time soon.

Critics of the new 'administrative' divorce have said that the laws would be open to abuse and would mean an end to marriage itself.

For more details on this story from the BBC's news website, please click here

Monday 12 May 2014

Don't annoy the Judge...

Pauline Chai, the Miss Malaysia wife of Laura Ashley tycoon Khoo Kay Peng, had filed to divorce her husband in a £500m case - yet earlier this month the businessman failed to turn up at the High Court for the second time.

The judge expressed his disgust at Dr Peng's non-attendance and dismissed the tycoon's excuse - that a former Malaysian judge advised him to stay away - as "complete rubbish".  Mr Justice Holman concluded Dr Peng was treating the court with contempt and "playing games".

The former beauty queen, 66, and the business tycoon, 74, began the bitter proceedings - which could result in Britain's biggest divorce settlement - after their 43-year marriage broke down last year.

Dr Peng wants the case to be heard in a court in his native Malaysia, where it is believed that his wife would be entitled to less.

Besides having a 40% stake in Laura Ashley, Dr Peng is a director of the Corus Hotel chain and runs a global investment company.  Estimates have put his wealth at up to £1bn.

The collapse of the couple's marriage has resulted in a surreal situation at Rossway Park, their estate near Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire.  Ms Chai lives in the main 15-bedroom home, while her husband uses the nearby five-bedroom manor house.  Each has their own Gurkha protection team who guard their respective portions of the estate, which boasts a menagerie of exotic animals and two artificial lakes.

To read the original full article which appeared in The Independent, please click here