Ex-wives upping the ante?

The Family Law legislation in Australia seeks, in a divorce, to divide the assets of a couple equally. That principle of equality may be shaken up as a result of the underlying thinking in 2 landmark cases just decided in the UK.

As The Independent reports:

"Thousands of divorced women who gave up high-flying careers for the sake of their marriages could qualify for millions of pounds in compensation after a House of Lords ruling in favour of ex-wives.

The judgments, delivered yesterday, considered two divorce cases involving super-rich husbands and set down new principles for the fair division of a married couple's assets. They are expected to trigger more claims from wives who still receive maintenance payments from their husbands but feel they have not been properly compensated for giving up lucrative careers."

Read the full article here. It is hard to believe that the principles enunciated in the cases won't find there way to Oz even if our legislative framework is different.

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