Brookman divorce case exposes legal loophole
( 14 Feb 2010)
The Sunday Telegraph reports on the divorce of Mr and Mrs Pell and how a High Court ruling means Mrs Pell is likely to be denied a large part of her husband’s fortune.
Brookman client, Sara Pell has been denied the option of divorcing her husband in Britain after the High Court ruled that divorce proceedings are to take place in Mr Pell’s preferred location, France.
Mr Pell, a former commercial director of Corus, the multinational steel company, has a £1.2 million pension held in Britain. Mrs Pell now has no rights to a percentage of these funds as the divorce will take place in another country.
The couple were married in Wales and lived in Britain for nine years, but more recently had been living in France. Mrs Pell filed for divorce after learning that her husband was having an affair and that her husband was allegedly transferring funds into his mistress’s account. Though Mrs Pell filed for divorce first in the British courts, Mr Pell filed a counter-claim in the French courts.
The implications of the split are already becoming real for Mrs Pell, who now has to claim state support, is living in rented accommodation and has taken their children out of private school. Mrs Pell argues that she devoted her life to her husband, regularly moving around the country and Europe to support his career.
Julius Brookman, Mrs Pell’s solicitor, called for more protection for British nationals in the current legislation. The High Court ruling means Mrs Pell and her children are likely to receive a much lower share of the assets than she would have otherwise been awarded if the divorce took place in Britain.
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