Financial Remedy Proceedings Following a Long Marriage Successfully Resolved at Financial Dispute Resolution

Financial remedy proceedings following the breakdown of a long marriage can become particularly complex where the parties’ assets extend across multiple jurisdictions and there are concerns about whether full financial disclosure has been provided.

Chan Neill Solicitors LLP represented a client in financial remedy proceedings following the breakdown of a long marriage. The case involved assets in the UK and overseas, including property in China and a shareholding, together with significant issues surrounding financial disclosure and valuation evidence.

The matter ultimately concluded successfully by agreement following a Financial Dispute Resolution (FDR) hearing.

The background 

This case arose from the breakdown of a long marriage involving a couple with two children. Following the separation, divorce proceedings were issued and the matter progressed into financial remedy proceedings. The assets in question included the former family home in Southwick, property interests in Foshan, Guangdong Province, China, and a company-owned property in Brighton, East Sussex. The case developed into a complex financial dispute concerning asset division, the adequacy of financial disclosure, and property valuation, requiring specialist family law and financial remedy expertise.

The Central Issue: Financial Disclosure

A central issue in the case was our client’s concern that the Respondent’s financial disclosure was incomplete. This included concerns about missing bank statements and other financial documents. The matter also raised potential third-party issues, including whether third-party disclosure should be sought and whether a third party should be joined to the proceedings. Property valuation was another important issue, and the court ordered the parties to jointly instruct a single joint expert to prepare an independent valuation report.

Our Approach

Our Family Law team developed and pursued a detailed disclosure strategy, identifying gaps in the Respondent’s financial information and investigating overseas assets, company interests and potential third-party involvement.

We worked closely with counsel and experts, coordinated valuation evidence, prepared the case for the FDR hearing and advanced settlement proposals on our client’s behalf.

This thorough preparation helped place our client in a strong position for negotiations, and the matter was successfully resolved by agreement following the FDR.

Cross-Border and Evidential Challenges

A key challenge was addressing ongoing concerns about the completeness of the Respondent’s financial disclosure, including missing bank statements, unexplained transactions and inconsistencies in the financial information provided.

The case was further complicated by assets across the UK and China, competing valuation evidence, tax and fund repatriation issues, and questions concerning possible third-party interests and beneficial ownership.

Outcome

The financial remedy proceedings were successfully resolved by agreement following the FDR hearing, avoiding the need for a contested final hearing.

The parties agreed a full and final consent order bringing their financial claims arising from the marriage to an end. The agreement included the husband vacating the family home and removing his Home Rights Notice, with a clean break between the parties.

How we can help:

Chan Neill Solicitors LLP’s Family Law team has extensive experience advising on a wide range of family law matters, including divorce, financial remedy proceedings, child arrangements and complex cases involving overseas assets and cross-border issues.

Our trilingual team provides clear, practical and tailored advice, with an understanding of the sensitive personal, financial and international issues that can arise in family disputes.

If you have concerns about financial disclosure, overseas assets or any other issue arising from divorce or separation, or require advice on another family law matter, please contact our Family Law team to discuss how we can assist.