Judges changing divorce settlement

[lucycerys]

Hi,I wonder if anyone has had any experience of our predicament.My fiance left Zimbabwe some 10 years ago and came to live in the UK with his wife and children (his father was English).After many years of a very unhappy marriage (on both sides),he was divorced a few years ago.His ex had a very generous package which involved 2yrs of (high)monthly payments.She emigrated well before they were divorced leaving him with the children (although they were teenage and upwards).We got together and were busy planning our future when we had a letter from the District Court stating that as part of a review procedure (which we gather is usually a rubber stamp job),a judge had looked at the case and felt is ex was entitled to lifelong maintenance!Both parties took legal advice and were in agreement with the settlement.The only thing we can think of is that the length of the marriage (25yrs) might have seemed disproportionate to the monies involved,but we feel the judge migh not have taken into account that when he left Zimbabwe,owing to the political situation there,they had to start again.We feel his lawyer is out of his depth and hasn't come across this situation before.So,does anyone have experience of this,and if so,can you recommend a good lawyer?

Mumblechum or babybarristrr prob your best bets for help.

Also,this is the first time I've used Mumsnet.At the risk of sounding like an idiot,how do you check replies???

You will see on threads I am on that you can see who has replied

Thanks,do you mean contact these members?

Also may get more replies if also post in legal section

No- but usually they read this kind of thing and help. Of course it's not proper legal advice as such but it will point you in right direction which sounds like what you want .

Have asked on another thread In legal for someone to come over here to help

Thank you so much.Where do you find the legal thread?Couldn't see it on the shortcuts list.

Go to all topics and its in the sub heading for legal and money

Thanks again!

Something very fishy going on here.

The court doesn't act on its own, without an application from one of the parties. The consent order should have a clause providing that at the end of the two years, either the spousal maintenance reverts to a nominal sum of £1 per annum, or is stopped altogether (there would be a reference to S28 (1) (A) of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973.

This is obviously on the assumption that the matter was dealt with in England and Wales.

Many thanks;I think I wasnt totally clea.When the decree absolute was issued, the consent order was not approved by the judge because the judge queried the non-extendable term order in respect of a long marriage. This was taken before a deputy district judge who said he was unable to make a decision as the issue hadn't been resolved and that either party was at liberty to file form a.e.g. a request for spousal maintenance.The ex wife has requested this,but he feels very strongly that this should not be agreed as an agreement was reached amicably with proper legal advice quite a while ago.he also feels that the fact he has moved on and met me has inflamed her feelings....

The problem is that the order was never actually made by the sound of it. Frankly, your dp'spartner's solicitors should not have let this drift on. Either the order should have been changed so that the wife could make an application in the future (ie removed the S28 clause), and the order sealed on that basis, which means that she could come back purely to argue for an extension of maintenance, or the whole order should have been renegotiated.

Unless I'm missing something, I think your dp's solicitor may have been negligent.

Many thanks for this.It seems very unfair that an agreed settlement (by two parties) can be over ruled.I guess its to protect a vulnerable person being taken advantage of,which is fair enough.When it gives a leeway for an already greedy person to become even greedier......

TBH, it's not the judge's fault. The judge will have rejected the consent order and asked for clarification re. the spousal mtce, and that wasn't sorted out by the solicitors and re submitted to court by the sound of it.