An Australian woman’s claim for additional financial support from her ex-husband is to proceed, despite several previous dismissals.
In MG v FG, the woman met the English husband in 2004, marrying him two years later in Sydney. They then set up home in England but split after just 16 months, following the birth of their child ‘CG’. They divorced in the Australian courts in 2009. The couple reached a negotiated financial settlement that year, involving time-limited maintenance, child support and a lump sum payment.
The mother remains in Australia but plans to move to the UK. The father, meanwhile, lives in London with a new family.
Some time later, the wife issued a fresh application under Schedule 1 of the Children Act 1989. This relates to Financial provision for children. The father applied to strike this out and she eventually agreed to do so, in November 2011. The following year, the mother applied in the Australian courts for the previous “Binding Agreements” she had reached with her ex during the financial settlement to be set aside and higher amounts awarded. The higher amounts sought were revised upwards over the course of the case, before their eventual dismissal by a family court. A judge noted that her application had been accompanied by a “plethora of lengthy affidavits with a significant number of annexures, not all of which appear to be directly relevant to the application”.
She took her case to the Australian federal courts, making a number of allegations, including duress, fraud, negligent advice and failure to make full disclosure. The sum demanded had by then risen to AU $580,000 (£330,475).
In the High Court, Mr Justice Cobb explained:
“The mother’s multiple applications were heard in 2014, and judgment was delivered on 29 January 2015. It is recorded in that judgment that 16 affidavits were filed by the mother …running to some 2,200 pages; 12 of the affidavits were ruled inadmissible in their entirety and of the remaining 4, certain whole sections of these were ruled inadmissible.”
Her applications were “thoroughly” and “carefully” dismissed.
The determined mother did not appeal but launched a new case in the English courts last year, this time based on Part III of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984, which covers Financial Relief in England and Wales after Overseas Divorce etc.
According to Mr Justice Cobb:
“She contended that the Binding Agreements were not fair and did not make proper provision for herself and her daughter, and that she had a real need for further financial relief.”
But this application too was unsuccessful. Mrs Justice Parker declared:
“I do not consider there is substantial ground for making an application. The fact that [the mother] wants now to live in England is not a ground for revisiting the decision that has been made in Australia.”
She applied for permission to appeal but was refused. Lady Justice Black noted that:
“I would observe that the marriage was a short one, albeit there was a child which is obviously an extremely important factor. Even in an English court sizable capital provision for the wife might not have been made.”
Shortly before permission was refused, the wife made a second application under Schedule 1 of the Children Act 1989 and the father again responded by applying to strike it out.
The former wife also applied for a legal services order, which would oblige the father to pay her legal costs.
Mr Justice Cobb noted that:
“The protracted litigation history in this case has given me much to reflect upon when considering this strike out application. The mother’s repeated failed applications may indicate abuse of a legal process; I have no reason to doubt that Parker J was right to use the word “unjustified”…”
Nevertheless, he did not dismiss the application, ordering the wife to make a full statement as to why “the Binding Agreements in Australia do not make proper financial provision for CG [their child]”.
He also requested additional documentation but added:
“I am not prepared to list this case for final hearing at this stage.”
Photo by vagawi via Flickr