Keeping family property out of a divorce

We helped a family hold on to what was rightfully theirs during a difficult divorce settlement.

When a marriage ends, it’s typically only the couple at the centre of the divorce who need support with settling finances. But, in this case, Alex’s* family came to us for help.

Robin* was attempting to claim a share of the assets that belonged to Alex. Our clients declared these to be family-owned assets, not to be part of any divorce settlement, so we were asked to intervene in the case on the family’s behalf.

Exploring ownership

It’s unusual for Anthony Collins to represent neither party during a divorce. Despite this, we took the same approach to finding a financial solution for Alex’s family as we would for a couple. Our two-stage process started with a thorough investigation as to the reasons why Robin was asserting an interest and what our clients’ response to that was.

Once we fully understood the history and our clients’ case, it was about obtaining and presenting the evidence in the most persuasive way to the court.

Time in court

With five parties involved in the case, we had to tread a very difficult line: showing particular care, expertise and knowledge in how we intervened in the case.

Our clients needed us to avoid doing anything that could unintentionally undermine any of Alex’s interests or that of the other intervenors. This backdrop was complicated further by Robin’s report of events changing on more than one occasion.

A clear way forward

After a three-day trial the court made the decision that everything in fact did belong to Alex’s family. With no assets to divide, Robin was entitled to half, but in this case it was half of nothing. Thanks to our support, this means that the assets will stay in the family.

“We were able to help this family hold on to assets built up over generations and stop them from getting into the hands of somebody who had no entitlement to them. Our input shows that if you do things the right way, thoroughly and diligently, you get the right answer.”
Chris Lloyd-Smith, partner, Anthony Collins

*Not their real names.