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Monthly Archives: January 2012

Divorce therapy for Trekkie may be thrown on the tip

By Family Department | Published: Jan 31,2012

Many people take up a sport or perhaps have a fantastic holiday to get over the difficulty of divorce, but a man from Leicestershire decided to turn his former marital home into a Star Trek fantasy.

Yes, following his separation from his wife Georgina in 1994, Tony Alleyne initially decked out the couple’s Hinckley home into the USS Enterprise, but he later changed it to a more upscale version of the Starship Voyager, modelling it meticulously on details taken from the 1990s series.

The flat boasts a flightdeck, with voice recognition technology, lots of flashing lights and even some fake (we hasten to add) transporters.

Mrs Alleyne continued to pay the mortgage on the one-bedroomed flat after the couple divorced while Mr Alleyne attempted, somewhat unsuccessfully, to start a business offering Star Trek makeovers.

However, Mr Alleyne’s ex-wife now wishes to sell the house, and under the terms of their divorce financial settlement, unless a buyer can be found for the space ship/flat, the hi-tech fittings will be stripped out so that a more conventional-type home can be placed on the market and sold.

Mr Alleyne said of his Star Trek construction obsession, “It all started as therapy after we split up. Building every bit from scratch really helped me to deal with the stress of it all.”

However, when he heard that his ex-wife intended to sell the flat, he added, “To say I’m gutted is an understatement. It is my life’s work – and it looks like it’s going into a skip. I admit there were tears.”

Whilst it seems a genuine shame that this sci-fi homage may well end up on a very terrestrial tip, all we can say here at Healys is “Live long and prosper, Mr Alleyne.” Our divorce solicitors in Brighton and London salute you.
For more information on how ownership of marital property could be affected during a divorce please click here.

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Mr Justice Mostin cites post-nuptial agreement as “grossly unfair”

By Family Department | Published: Jan 30,2012

Divorce solicitors in Brighton, London and throughout the UK will read with interest the findings of Mr Justice Mostyn in the High Court hearing of Kremen v Agrest (Financial Remedy: Non-Disclosure: Post-Nuptial Agreement) [2012].

Mostyn J dismissed the post-nuptial agreement made by the couple, citing it as “grossly unfair”.
To find out more about how Healys divorce solicitors in Brighton could help you negotiate a pre- or post-nuptial agreement, please click here.
The marital property agreement had been made and signed ten years after Boris Agrest, a Russian financier, and his wife were married and, so it is reported, it sought to limit Ms Kremen’s financial claims on divorce to around £970,000.

In making his ruling, Mr Justice Mostyn expressed a hope that it would bring an end to what he described as a “chronic and complex piece of matrimonial litigation”.

His judgment concludes that:

i) [Ms Kremen] did not freely enter into the agreement with a full appreciation of its implications. It was the product of pressure from [Mr Agrest] and there was a material absence of independent legal advice and disclosure.

ii) Moreover, it is doubtful that the parties ever actually intended that the agreement should govern the financial consequences of the marriage coming to an end.

iii) It would be grossly unfair to hold [Ms Kremen] to an agreement which deprived her of her fair share of a fortune to the formation of which she has, in her own way, equally contributed.

iv) Moreover, the agreement did not then, nor does it now, remotely meet her reasonable needs.

v) And the agreement grossly prejudices the needs of the children.

As a result, Mr Agrest was ordered to pay his ex-wife a lump sum payment of £12.5m. It was noted that £8.3m of this amount constituted maintenance.

To read the full judgment in the case please click here.

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Negligence claims and the UK property market’s global appeal

By Professional Negligence Department | Published: Jan 27,2012

It is thought that there an increasing number of overseas investors are instructing lawyers to make professional negligence claims against valuers and surveyors in the UK.

This is because the UK property market has long been a desirable target for investors from overseas, both private and commercial.

As it currently stands, financial markets are uncertain, making the UK property market, particularly central London and the well-heeled home counties, an ideal alternative for overseas investors looking to secure and enhance their assets.

But as so many of these investors are amongst the world’s most privileged and empowered individuals, they are also amongst the most litigious.

This means that if things go wrong and investments in the property market fail to reap the rewards predicted by surveyors, valuers and financial advisors, professional negligence claims may well follow. And it is not only investors who will seek to claim, in many cases lenders will also seek to recover any losses caused by negligence.

“I anticipate the volume of valuer claims will surge significantly again over the next couple of years particularly as limitation is becoming more of an issue for claimants,” says a solicitor who has acted for a number of UK banks.

So far though, premium real estate in areas such as Mayfair, Kensington, Hampstead, Notting Hill and Sussex has proved robust to the vulnerabilities and fluctuations of the property market, increasing or maintaining value in the face of general market trends.

So long as this situation remains in place, overseas investors are unlikely to instruct professional negligence lawyers to commence claims, but should this change valuers and surveyors may be facing up to some of the world’s most fearful adversaries: the super rich.

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First-time buyers have been purchasing affordable homes

By Residential Department | Published: Jan 24,2012

In recent months it had been thought that fewer first-time buyers were seeking a solicitor for conveyancing to help them purchase a property, however, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has revealed that many suchbuyers have in fact been taking advantage of current affordable house prices.

Paul Smee, director general of the CML, said, “While the number of first-time buyers – and indeed all buyers – has declined markedly since the credit crunch, the proportion of loans advanced to first-time buyers has remained remarkably steady, fluctuating between 34per cent and 40per cent of the total since 2005. In November, first-time buyers took up 37per cent of the house purchase market, the same as in October.”

The organisation has released figures showing that during November last year many first-time buyers noticed a decline in the proportion of their income accounted for by mortgage interest payments.

The figures reveal that although mortgage interest repayments fell to just over 12 per cent in November – first time buyers were paying 13 per cent the year before – housing costs are still taking about £1 in every £8 earned by first-time buyers whereas second or third time buyers are spending less than a tenth of their income.

However, it has been reported that even estate agents are preparing for house prices to fall further in 2012 and it is thought that many home-owners planning to sell will wait to begin the residential conveyancing process in hope that house prices will improve.

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Divorce settlement dispute for Aga Khan

By Family Department | Published: Jan 21,2012

When it comes to high-value divorce financial settlement claims you can’t get much bigger than the current hearings related to the Aga Khan.

The fourth Aga Khan is 75-year-old Prince Karim Al Husseini. He is a British citizen, Swiss taxpayer, French resident and currently embroiled in divorce proceedings involving a £50 million payment to his estranged second wife Begum Inaara Aga Khan, a German-born former pop star, 48.

A lower court had originally ruled that Begum Inaara should receive only £10 million, yet, in 2011, an appeal court ruled that as the Aga Khan had been at fault in the breakdown of the relationship he should make the French record-breaking divorce settlement payment of £50m to his ex-wife. This sum was based on the reasoning that they had enjoyed two years as a married couple before the split.

However, in a move which has baffled some family law commentators, his divorce solicitors have now applied, on his behalf, to take the case to the highest French court, the Cour de Cassation.

In terms of wealth the settlement sum seems rather paltry when you consider that the current Aga Khan is estimated to be worth in the region of £8 billion and that, when the couple first split up in 2004, his estranged spouse sought £166 million.

The latest legal retaliation move will stall the process for at least another year and perhaps up to seven, according to The Telegraph.

Meanwhile, media speculation had been rife that the Aga Khan had been planning to marry for a third time to mother-of-four Beatrice von der Schulenburg, the divorced wife of City recruitment company head Jeffrey von der Schulenburg.

The Cour de Cassation now has the power to decide whether the most recent ruling was legal and, if it can’t be decided as such, there could be a new full appeals trial which would certainly mean further delays to a full divorce settlement.

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Construction and architectural claims laid bare by winds

By Professional Negligence Department | Published: Jan 16,2012

Sometimes construction and architectural negligence does not become apparent until some kind of cataclysmic event uncovers the truth of shoddy or substandard work.

The gale-force winds which hit much of the UK a couple of weeks ago, causing widespread damage and disruption, if not devastation, to many areas of the country can be considered to be one such cataclysmic event.

From areas as far south as Sussex, Hampshire and London to many Northern parts of the country such as Cumbria and Scotland, newspaper headlines were quickly filled with alarming Wizard of Oz-esque stories of roofs and buildings being swept up and carried by dangerous swirling winds.

Whether it was beach huts lifted and destroyed in Hayling Island, Hampshire, racecourse roofs being flung and crushed in Epsom, Surrey, Maypoles being flung and mangled in Lewis, East Sussex or wind turbines being ripped and wrecked in Holmesfield, Derbyshire, the gales certainly made their presence felt.

One thing is for sure – although the winds may have died down and most of the necessary repair work already begun, the effects of the winds will be felt for some time to come, particularly in the offices of insurance companies and construction and architectural negligence solicitors.

However, whether professional negligence solicitors will be able to help obtain settlements in any of the above examples of damage and disruption is a moot question. After all, damage caused by a cataclysmic event may, far from being proof of construction or architectural negligence, be only an unavoidable consequence of freak events.

As such, although those who have suffered damage to their property as a result of the recent gale-force winds should look to contact their insurance companies and professional negligence solicitors for advice, they should do so without expectation and with the knowledge that every individual case is different.

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Sellers change their strategy to make a sale

By Residential Department | Published: Jan 16,2012

A recent report has suggested that property conveyancing solicitors may soon notice a change of strategy that a number of property sellers across the UK are adopting in order to boost their chances of making a sale.

Sellers who have been unable to sell their properties have been opting to reduce their asking price in a bid to generate more interest in their homes, the report reveals.

Property website Zoopla has claimed that 40% of all properties currently on the market have had their asking prices reduced and the discount is estimated to average at £19,500.

Although it is thought that London has been left largely unaffected by the recession, Zoopla has estimated that about a third of properties on the market in the capital have reduced their prices, whereas the area which has had the greatest number of discounts is Scotland.

George Philip, an estate agent in Oxfordshire, said, “The key lies in keeping the differential between the property you sell and the one you buy.

“If you lower the price you are asking, you can make an offer on the house you are buying.

“I recommend that the asking price should be the equivalent of the lowest offer you can accept. If a lower offer is made you can always turn it down, or think of it as giving you options on the house you want to buy.”

If the new tactic is successful, people may be able to sell their homes more quickly and therefore be able to begin the residential conveyancing process.

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Commercial property conveyancing solicitor professional negligence

By Professional Negligence Department | Published: Jan 13,2012

A recent professional negligence claim between commercial property purchasers (C) and their solicitors (D) has illustrated the importance of using expert and thorough property conveyancing services.

D had been instructed by C to advise on the purchase of a guesthouse, however it was alleged that D failed to uncover the full extent of planning and usage conditions of the property in question.

To find out more about making a professional negligence claim against solicitors please click here.

The court heard that at the time of sale the guesthouse seller intended to live in an annexe which, although partitioned from the main guesthouse, was interconnected. The annexe had not been included as part of the property for the purpose of the sale.

Once the sale had been completed it was discovered that dual occupancy of the property breached planning conditions in place for the property and C was issued with an enforcement notice.

Eventually, as relations with the seller broke down C decided they should sell the property back to the original owner. C subsequently had to move into rented accommodation.

D admitted conveyancing solicitor negligence and the court was asked to determine a suitable assessment of damages.

In line with Hayes v James & Charles Dodd (A Firm) [1990] damages were assessed using the capital loss method on a no transaction basis so as to restore C to the same financial position they would have been enjoying had the professional negligence not occurred.

The court held that C would not have purchased the property had the restrictions on usage been uncovered prior to the sale and they had been properly advised. C was therefore entitled to compensation amounting to the losses involved in a mortgage redemption and lost business expenses.

However, the unforeseeable costs of a postponed holiday and living expenses following the sale were deemed not recoverable.

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Shared parenting rights to become law

By Family Department | Published: Jan 10,2012

Shared parenting after a divorce is undoubtedly the common-sense choice for healthy family relations after most divorces. However, the family justice review, published in November, shied away from recommending that a law should be introduced to ensure parents’ equal rights in parenting.

However, recent reports suggest that Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg and Welfare Secretary Iain Duncan Smith are supporting plans that would see courts obligated to ensure equal rights for both parents in respect of children arrangements after divorce.

Any parent who does not accept and uphold terms of a court order regarding rights to time with children will be deemed in contempt of court and could face a jail sentence.

Tim Loughton, the children’s minister, said, “Our vision is to establish that, under normal circumstances, a child will have a relationship with both his or her parents, regardless of their relationship with each other.

“We must do everything we can to improve the system so that it gives children the best chance of growing up under the guidance of two loving parents. All the evidence tells us that children genuinely benefit from a relationship with both parents, with the potential to make different contributions to their child’s development.

“The culture has shifted away from the traditional view that mothers are primarily responsible for the care of children. Increasingly society recognises the valuable and distinct role of both parents. We are looking closely at all the options for promoting shared parenting through possible legislative and non-legislative means.”

Nadine O’Connor, the campaign director for Fathers4Justice, said the proposed legislation would be a “massive step forward”.

Mrs O’Connor said, “It is a massive step forward. It is saying that Dads have as many rights as Mums. I will believe it when I see it, but the reform has to apply across the family justice system.”
For more details about parents’ rights in divorce please contact Healys’ Brighton divorce solicitors or click here to read further information on children in divorce.

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Payday loans being used to pay mortgages

By Residential Department | Published: Jan 8,2012

A number of solicitors in conveyancing are likely to have noticed a fall in property sales recently, and a report has revealed that some homeowners and tenants are struggling to pay their mortgage or rent every month.

A survey conducted by homeless charity Shelter has revealed that seven million British residents are resorting to using credit, such as payday loans, in order to keep a roof over the heads.

Payday loans are designed to be a short term solution for people who urgently need money and they can be taken out over the internet and on the high street. However, the high rates of interest can mean that people have to pay back a lot more money than they initially borrowed if they are late to repay the loan.

Campbell Robb, Shelter’s chief executive, has voiced concerns that these loans can lead residents to accrue huge debts which they are then unable to control.

Mr Robb said, “These shocking findings show the extent to which millions of households across the country are desperately struggling to keep their home.”

Martin Lewis, an executive at MoneySavingExpert.com, stated, “It is incredibly worrying that there is now evidence that people are using payday loans to meet housing costs. While it is an obvious temptation to grasp these loans as a lifeline, in the long run it may hurt more than help.”

The report suggests that many UK residents will be unable to either progress onto or up the property ladder, consequently beginning the residential conveyancing process, until they are more financially secure.

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