If either party makes an application to the Court for a financial remedy (settlement) order, then the Court will automatically order both parties to fully disclose ALL their finances and assets, including details of overseas holdings. These details are filed with the Court and exchanged with the other party. Even after the Form E has been filed and exchanged, the parties must make full, frank, relevant and continuing disclosure of their finances until an agreement has been reached or the Court has made a final order. In effect, this means each party will be legally obligated to disclose to the other party any changes in their financial circumstances, or indeed any relevant changes in their personal circumstances.
The tranny, the indignity and the injustice is added to if the payee co-habits with a new partner or re-marries. The finances of the payees’ new partner or wife must be included in submissions to the court. This can and does create a situation where any child of the payees’ new family is potentially having their living standard lowered and potential inheritance re-distributed to a person (or family) that they have no connection with.
However, the recipient is not required to disclose a new partners financial details and any support received from that new partner is not taken into consideration by the court in assessing the level of support deemed appropriate.
The 28 page Form E demands the following information:-
Section 1: Names and addresses, information about the marriage or civil partnership, any children’s educational arrangements and any child maintenance being paid.
Section 2: The following information and documentation needs to be supplied:
• for all of the property owned either jointly or separately, up-to-date mortgage statements and evidence of its approximate value.
• for all of your bank or building society accounts, the last 12 months’ statements
• the current value of any investments (shares, ISAs, unit trusts etc)
• details of life insurance policies and their surrender values
• details of any cash in hand, in any currency, over £500
• details of personal belongings worth over £500 (e.g. cars, paintings, antiques etc.)
• details of debts, such as credit cards and bank loans
• any actual or potential capital gains tax liabilities on investment property or shares
• business assets—if you are a company director or in partnership, or run a business, you need to provide company accounts and various other documents
• recent or up-to-date pension valuations
• details of earned or self-employed income, with payslips and/or tax returns in support, along with any unearned income from investments and any state benefits.
• details of any interests you have under a trust or any imminent inheritances
Section 3:Income and capital requirements for the future including a monthly budget.
Section 4: Disclosure of recent or imminent changes in assets, contributions to the marriage or civil partnership, standard of living enjoyed and other relevant circumstances.
If you have remarried or are living with a new partner, you will also need to give details of your spouse or partner’s assets and income so far as you know them.
Expert evidence may also be required to supplement your financial disclosure, e.g. a property valuation by a surveyor.
In Purba v Purba [2000] 1 FLR 444, Thorpe LJ stated at 449C
"In this field of litigation budgets prepared by the parties often have a high degree of unreality – usually the applicant wife’s budget is much inflated… the essential task of the judge is not to go through these budgets item by item but stand back and ask, what is the appropriate proportion of the husband’s available income that should go to the support of the wife?"