Should I ask for spousal maintenance in England or Scotland?
17th May 2018
The decision of the Court of Appeal (of England and Wales) in Villiers v Villiers has been issued today. This is an important case for couples who may divorce, and who have connections north and south of the border. It makes clear that, as far as the English courts are concerned, there can be proceedings in more than one part of the UK at any given time- with the court in one jurisdiction dealing with maintenance claims (aliment or alimony) and another dealing with the substance of the divorce and other financial claims. This is often of crucial importance to outcomes, as the law in Scotland and England and Wales are very different.
Lady Justice King notes in the judgement, "if, within the terms of the Regulation, a party is able to choose between two jurisdictions, then he or she is perfectly entitled to choose that which is more beneficial to him or her."
SKO have been at the forefront of this area of law since the Maintenance Regulation came into force in the UK. We acted in the first cases before the Scottish Courts and work regularly with English lawyers in cases like, and including, this one. If these issues are of interest to you, contact Rachael Kelsey or John West for more information.
