The Dreaded Form E

Lord Justice Thorpe reminded us recently that everybody in divorce cases lie.  That may be overstating it, but many do and there are no prosecutions for perjury.  So approaching things on that basis with a degree of cynicism one looks at a wealthy individual, usually the husband, with his Form E.  The Solicitors Journal www.solicitorsjounal.com reminds in its 17 June issue, that a it is necessary to have a competent and experienced divorce lawyer.

Social network sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn can lead to a wealth of information. Photographs of venues, spending habits, exotic destinations etc are there for all to see.

Credit history searches for directorships and credit card statements tell a story of a lifestyle, that will help get to the bottom of the true position.

Routinely people lie like a trooper on the Form E and in replies to questionnaires.  That is a contempt of Court but very few cases are prosecuted but there is one thing that a businessman fears is having his collar felt.

One comes into the area of locking up “daddy” or “mummy” with children.  A specific horrendous and painful financial penalty as is imposed in employment cases, would not be a bad starting point.  For example if there was a lie on a Form E a “fine” of 10% of the total assets of that person (not just the undisclosed one) would certainly concentrate the mind.

Far too many lawyers ask questions for the sake of it which are not focused or do anything to advance their client’s case.  For example “Have you disclosed all your bank accounts?” is likely to receive the answer “yes”.

A better approach is “We do not believe you and will put you in the witness box and ask you to state on oath, about all your bank accounts and if you fail to disclose them we will ask the judge to immediately incarcerate you” might get more attention

Have a look at the hylton-potts.com website for more information.