Divorce- is there a way to cut her out?

[cookiecrazylady]

Name changed for this as very outing but long time user.

Ok so I’m looking for controversial advice.
How best to cut a spouse out of profiting on the sale of a property.

My 23yo brother is disabled and got a big payout at 18 which he used to buy a house. It’s worth £250k he met a girl and they decided to get married. All seemed perfect until she convinced him to let her take out a £50k mortgage on the property but she was working so in her name (he was a student). She swiftly spent it, I’m talking £8k earrings, £3k handbags, £4K holiday (with her friends not him)…etc the whole family were raising eyebrows at this point but nothing we could do. 3 months after the wedding she left him. He was devestated, he really loved her. Now she’s demanding £50k cash over and above the mortgage being paid off.

Brother knows he’s been stupid but he has some mild learning disabilities and I do believe she just pulled the wool over his eyes so hard. Is there any way to avoid her getting anything other than the debts/mortgage cleared?

He’s taken legal advice but they only focus on how to proceed with her requests, I suppose I’m looking for a loophole or way out for him although I suspect it doesn’t exist.

Thanks

yes go with him to lawyer op
and you will get the full picture
she has presumably been financially supporting him to some extent whilst she’s been working and he’s been a student (of what?)

Again, happy to take criticism. But it may be useful if you explain why you think that and perhaps add something useful to OP.

I’ve experience gained over hundreds (if not thousands) of divorce and children act cases - no two the same. If this goes to court the starting position from the judge is always the same - equality and meeting the needs (including housing) of both parties. And thus the marital home will be seen as probably the single biggest joint asset that could be realised to meet this need.

because the default position isn’t

married
50/50

it is much more nuanced than that and considers so many factors

i will wager you have never endured a divorce

your “job”?

my arse

Nice. Yes, my old job. Loved it, was good at it, my boss was a force to be reckoned with. Plus a 4 year LLB I studied before that. Plus helping my father with his divorce (which made me decide to retrain to Law).

No, I’ve never endured a divorce. The frustrating thing about a divorce is once you’ve personally endured it you think that that’s the cookie cutter for all and that’s simply not the case. Hence why I’ve specified how many cases I’ve seen cross my desk. You are correct that there are nuances - that’s my point about no 2 being the same. However in a courtroom the judge starts from the same position - sorry that that is where you take offence.

Not going to continue arguing with strangers on the internet, consider this the Mumsnet hill I’ll die on.

@cookiecrazylady please tell your brother to seek proper legal advice. I will also say that the 30 min free thing is also more and more of a myth due to lack of funding to legal services for vulnerable people, but if you search enough may be found. Also, lots of places still doing video calls if requested so may be easy to get a quick apt that he could attend at your house if he needs help. Hope it works out for your brother.

so to be clear @LL1991

You really do think that in any divorce both parties are entitled to 50/50

irrespectvie of detail

my boss was a force to be reckoned with.

i don’t doubt your boss was

What has happened to you so early in the morning that you feel the need to come for strangers on the internet?
Goodbye and have a blessed day..

i don’t like ignorant posters giving shit advice on important matters 🤷

The “starting point” is 50/50 before other factors such as children, length of marriage and other things are taken into consideration

He might get her off the deeds to the house if he agrees to take over the mortgage payments and argue that she then still has a substantial sum in jewellery and designer bags if she sold them.

See a 2nd solicitor who might come up with a better solution but remember she does own 50% of the house and fighting a protracted divorce battle could end up with him saving in paying her £50k but solicitors bills rack up and he might have a £50k bill to his solicitor instead

did you read what the PP.

No nuance nothing.

she was telling the op that it would be 50/50

which is patently wrong!

It sounds like you need better legal advice than you are already getting. There are potential issues of undue influence here and your brother needs better representation.

Another person who doesn’t understand how she took out a mortgage on a property in his name 🤷‍♀️

Is your brother known to Social Services/ Mental Health services? This sounds like an adult safeguarding situation. You should be able to submit a MARF (safeguarding referral form) on your local adults social services website, or report by phone if that's preferable, and they will fill in the form for you. I suggest reporting that your brother has a diagnosed LD, family have expressed concerns around his wife's actions and motivations, and the basics about the mortgage quickly followed by the marital split. You have reason to believe that there is financial abuse with possible fraud being perpetrated against him, which puts him at risk of financial hardship in the future. You don't need to go into masses of detail at this point but family should start gathering information together to present to the involved agencies. Present fact as fact (with proof if you have it, e.g. previous court record of pay-out, diagnostic letters, emails or texts from her to your brother that suggest planning, grooming etc.) and anything that could be considered as hearsay (second-hand reports, quotes from brother/ wife) clearly given as such. Try to be as factual as possible.

SS will liaise with police etc. if your brother has mental capacity issues that bring into doubt his ability to make independent, informed decisions around marriage/ finances including the mortgage/ divorce due to his LD. The safeguarding team may decide that the Court of Protection may be an appropriate avenue for legal support if he is deemed to lack capacity and financial abuse by his wife is in question. In this instance, I'd ask an Independent Mental Capacity Advocate (IMCA) to undertake assessment as it is their specialty, and it's important that an assessed lack of capacity around each specific matter is thoroughly and competently evidenced. You should be able to access one free of charge via Social Services or Community Mental Health Team (CMHT). IMCAs are a very useful resource within a safeguarding team as they come without their agencies' agendas, being independent. (Edit: they can also be a useful bridge between family and your brother/ various agencies so maybe he doesn't feel railroaded or pressured by family, which could protect family relationships in the future).

The police can advise if they would also recommend a separate solicitor for civil matters.

You might want to check out some case law for some pointers, this is a great resource: Mental Capacity Resource Centre | 39 Essex Chambers. The team at 39 Essex Chambers are really helpful and might offer you some advice in securing a suitable solicitor to give the best service in this case.

I hope at least some of this is helpful.

But ultimately no, marriage entitles you to half of what you started with, including the house he paid for before the marriage and then moved her into.

Fiction
Nonsense
Ignore

How long were they together before the marriage?

I think @cookiecrazylady you should read the post by @SurroundedByEejits who gives very good advice on the specifics as given the situation of your brother's disability then this may change things from the usual divorce split dynamics.

This. I take it there's no children involved.

Not much the police can do.

Do they own the home as tenants in common and have it stated who owns what percentage? Does it state legally how much your brother put in as a deposit and was it ring fenced in the case of a divorce?

During the financial settlement hearing, all assets and debts will go onto the Form E and the judge will decide who is liable for what. The things mentioned above will form part of their decision (there will be more but I’m not an expert) As other people have said, a short marriage will also be taken into consideration.

He has “mild learning difficulties” homeowner who is a student

SS won’t get involved and nor should they

Same

It’s not - it’s a ‘specific learning difficulty.’

A learning disability is diagnosed on the basis of two factors: cognitive ability (as in, a low IQ upon testing), plus impaired activities of daily living (again, there is an assessment for this).

Opinions aside you need specialised legal advice. She will probably do the same to other people in life. The only positive is that your brother is quite young so has enough time in life to get past this. I would help him with getting the right legal advice. I also think he needs a lot of support. When he starts work have a look at getting him a support worker through Access to Work.

Ill repeat my previous answer:

"So I understand now. Had the original said "an actual diagnosed learning disability as opposed to an actual diagnosed learning difficulty (like dyslexia)" I would have had no problem. The original phrasing suggested that dyslexia was an excuse rather than a diagnosis and a recognised disability under the Equality Act which has a substantial and long term adverse effect on day to day life."