Much-Watched Case of Heiress Worth $80M Could Change Law in World 'Divorce Capital'
Considered the divorce capital of the world, London poses pitfalls for wealthy spouses who thought their assets were protected in divorce by prenuptial agreements.
Courts in the United Kingdom will void provisions in these agreements if they are unfair or the less-wealthy spouse wasn’t properly represented by legal counsel. And that can come as a shock to foreign nationals who find that residing in London puts them under local jurisdiction, reports the Economist.
In a much-watched case of a German heiress now being heard by the Supreme Court in London, her husband, Nicolas Granatino, signed a prenuptial agreement that he would get nothing in a divorce. However, he now argues that he didn’t realize how wealthy his wife, Katrin Radmacher, was and says he wasn’t properly represented.
Granatino also gave up a lucrative banking career to become an academic at Oxford University, and in a series of rulings, the British courts have awarded him $8.9 million in U.S. dollars, since reduced to $1.48 million by the Court of Appeal. His wife is worth an estimated $80 million and is expected to inherit more, the article recounts.
The Supreme Court ruling is expected to set a new benchmark in British matrimonial law, and lawyers around the world who represent wealthy clients are watching to see how it may affect the advice they offer those who might at some point take up residency in the U.K.
