Barrister's ex-wife awarded payout 25 years after divorce
01 Apr 2010
A barrister's ex-wife has successfully fought a legal battle to
claim a divorce settlement, 25 years after she split from her
husband.
Philippa Vaughan, 66, and David Vaughan married in 1967 and
divorced in 1985. The case began in 2009 when the courts ruled that
Mrs Vaughan's GBP 27,000 a year maintenance payments should be
stopped.
Mr Vaughan, who has since remarried, argued that his first wife
should no longer be his financial responsibility.
However, his ex-wife argued that this decision was wrong and left
her in hardship because she had become used to a more affluent
lifestyle.
She took the case to the Court of Appeal in a bid to claim a lump
sum payout of GBP 341,000 from her former husband.
Now, the court has ruled in favour of Mrs Vaughan after Lord
Justice Wilson overturned the previous decision.
He said that it was "plainly wrong" to expect Mrs Vaughan to expect
to live on a vastly reduced income and said she should be entitled
to a new divorce settlement.
Although Mr Vaughan's legal team argued that a payout would include
assets built up during his second marriage, the judge
disagreed.
As a result, Mrs Vaughan will now receive a lump sum payout of GBP
215,000, with the final award to be settled in July this
year.
In a statement in response to the judgment, Mrs Vaughan said:
"I am relieved that finally justice has prevailed. Court orders and
first wives cannot be swept aside at the whim of the rich and
powerful."
Toby Hales, Mrs Vaughan's solicitor commented: "This was a
difficult case, fought aggressively by the husband who had
assembled the most expensive and notorious legal team in the
Country. I am delighted that we managed to overturn the High
Court’s decision which, as well as being devastating for Mrs
Vaughan, threatened to set a dangerous precedent for first wives
receiving long-term maintenance. The press coverage was
initially very unfair to Mrs Vaughan, suggesting that she had gone
back to Court seeking additional money from her husband when in
fact it was he who had initiated legal proceedings."
Mrs Vaughan was represented by Hodge Jones & Allen LLP family
law solicitor
Toby Hales and barrister Christopher
Wagstaffe from 29 Bedford Row.
