Divorce is a very difficult and distressing life-event, and people are quite often emotionally fragile and hurt; sometimes this leads to anger and the inability to think clearly, and logic and common sense often disappear out of the window. Anyone who has been divorced will likely have a story to tell that will make people gasp in surprise, but some disputes and demands made during the divorce are extraordinary. Here is a small selection:The casserole dishA divorcing couple had almost sorted out their division of assets and belongings save for a single casserole dish. It was not valuable and held…

The Law Commission says that Wills need to be brought into the 21st century. In many ways, the urgency makes sense. For at least a decade now most of us have been using digital technology to help us negotiate our banking, shopping, working lives, dating, and family lives, – the list could go – but one area in which we are yet to fully embrace the digital, remains Wills, where we are still doing things in largely the same way our Victorian forbears did.But, before we throw out the baby with the bathwater, not everything that is old is out-dated,…

Summer holidays. We all look forward to them.For children they represent a not insignificant portion of their entire lifespan thus far, they have an air of boundlessness, of time spent timelessly, free from the confines of the classroom, a time for new experiences, for wonder. For adults enjoying the summer holidays, there is both a nostalgia for the summer holidays of their own childhood and a vicarious thrill in being privy to the summer holiday experiences of their own children, while, practically, they also serve as an enjoyable and necessary interruption to the long attritional working and domestic days that…

A woman has been granted permission to appeal the ruling of a case that the treasurer of Resolution has called “the most significant divorce case of the century so far”. Here we take a look at the development of Owens v Owens, before it reaches the Supreme Court. What we know so farMrs Owens has been refused a divorce after failing to convince the court that the behaviour of her husband of 39 years sufficiently constitutes current definitions of “unreasonable behaviour”, with HHJ Tolson QC determining that the marriage was subject only to “minor altercations of a kind to be…

An aspect of separation and divorce that is rarely talked about with any level of seriousness is what happens to the family pets? As anyone with a cat, dog, turtle, axolotl or miniature elephant will know, pets are more than secondary to a family life, in fact they form part of a family’s dynamics and may even be viewed as another family member. For children, pets can be constant and anchoring presences who keep confidences while offering unconditional love and affection at a time when they may question their parents’ love for them. In short, family pets may offer comfort…

If you thought that the impending changes to inheritance tax law represented uncomplicated good news, you’d better think again.This is because far from making the process of inheritance tax fairer and more straightforward as the government has promised, it is likely that the changes will, to some extent, only add to the confusion and, potentially, the liability of those who are not in receipt of good inheritance tax advice.For example, as of April next year a new “family home allowance” will increase the tax-free liability of many families by adding £175,000 to the existing £325,000 tax-free threshold of each individual.…

The Ministry of Justice recently provoked consternation with news that it would introduce a massive hike in probate fees for those estates valued over £50,000. Currently the fee is £155 (if grant of probate is obtained through a solicitor) or £210 (if an individual applies).However, with the increase in place, fees will range from £300 to a whopping £20,000, with the higher sum applicable for estates valued at £2 million or over and, depressingly, the Government Response to the consultation on fee reform makes clear what the real reason is for the proposed increases: “a properly funded courts and tribunals…

Inheritance tax is one of those contentious areas of taxation which is almost impossible to pitch correctly to the electorate. With so many people having different views on the subject – and indeed single individuals capable of possessing seemingly conflicting views – it is very much a “damned if you do and damned if you don’t” kind of affair.Whatever the case, the process of inheritance tax and probate in general presents considerable challenges to the personal representatives of estates, regardless of whether they are executors or administrators.Against this background, it seems a little disingenuous that the government should have recently…

Family holidays… it’s a time to look forward to sun, sea and sand. Probably the last thing on your mind when planning a holiday is whether your ex partner agrees to you taking the children abroad. But, if they don’t, you could get more than you bargained for at the airport when attempting to get through passport control.When taking children on holiday abroad, all parties who have Parental Responsibility for the child need to consent to the child being taken out of the country. This is the case unless you have a Residence Order (now called a Child Arrangements Order)…

During the difficult time of a loved one passing away, the last thing anyone should want is an acrimonious dispute. Nevertheless, contested probate cases are becoming increasingly common and family feuds about inheritance are a rising mainstay of courtroom scheduling.Here are just a few of the reasons why probate doesn’t always run as smoothly as the decedent may have hoped. Lost or no WillIf the Will has been lost (which, considering 58% of adults don’t know the whereabouts of their closest relative’s Will, isn’t an unlikely possibility), then problems can arise. Dying without a recoverable Will means the estate is…