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The Business of Divorce
25 March 2010 :: The Business Review, Reading Chronicle

We have been inundated by applications for the role of a new divorce solicitor. The quality of the candidates has been impressive and it won’t be easy to choose.  Recruitment takes time but it pays to invest in getting the right new person.

Deloitte’s recent research, “Managing Talent in a Turbulent Economy” showed that, within areas of increased focus on training and development, 37% of organisations surveyed said they would major on high potential employee development.

In the same report, 61% of the CEOs interviewed said that their key issue was cutting and managing costs. So, rather competing priorities, then, for business leaders in the present climate.

As one of the five founder member niche firms of the national D5 family law network, launched earlier this year, we are already planning our next conference. Next month will see my firm hosting the other members in our “city”, as Gordon Brown has it, for one of our regular meetings.

Divorce lawyers are hoping for guidance soon on prenuptial agreements from the highest court in England. Currently, “pre-nups” do not bind a court. The court may, however, have regard to them when making divorce settlements.

The recent case of Radmacher v Granatino has caused much debate. The German wife and the French husband had signed a pre-nuptial agreement valid under German law some three months before they married.

The agreement provided that they would keep separate any property brought into the marriage and neither would have any claim against the capital or income of the other.

The High Court awarded the husband a lump sum of £5.6m. The Court of Appeal reduced the husband’s award and the Supreme Court is now considering his appeal. Let’s hope that the judgment, when it comes, gives our clients more certainty.

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