A recent story in the press has shown that a winner of the Euromillions lottery is set to pay £2 million to his ex-wife some 10 years after she left him.
The winner, Mr Page, scooped a huge £56 million to become the UK’s biggest winner back in February. His ex-wife originally made a claim for £8 million but has now settled for £2 million. Mr Page, who has since remarried, must also pay child maintenance of £2,000 a month, up from the previous sum of £150 a month.
James Haworth, Head of Family Law at Lawson-West, commented: “This case highlights the importance of getting a final financial order (preferably a clean break) in divorce proceedings. People think that if they are divorced the ‘Decree Absolute’ prevents the ex-spouse from pursuing a financial claim. That isn’t the case and a specific court order, often made by agreement, is essential to prevent an ex-spouse making a claim in the future. If you win the lottery, like in this case, or if your financial position improves in other ways you could become an attractive target for your ex-spouse if you don’t take action to prevent this from happening. So don’t leave the way open to a potential claim in the future. Make sure the correct action is taken at the time of the divorce”
For more information, please contact James on 0116 212 1080.
The winner, Mr Page, scooped a huge £56 million to become the UK’s biggest winner back in February. His ex-wife originally made a claim for £8 million but has now settled for £2 million. Mr Page, who has since remarried, must also pay child maintenance of £2,000 a month, up from the previous sum of £150 a month.
James Haworth, Head of Family Law at Lawson-West, commented: “This case highlights the importance of getting a final financial order (preferably a clean break) in divorce proceedings. People think that if they are divorced the ‘Decree Absolute’ prevents the ex-spouse from pursuing a financial claim. That isn’t the case and a specific court order, often made by agreement, is essential to prevent an ex-spouse making a claim in the future. If you win the lottery, like in this case, or if your financial position improves in other ways you could become an attractive target for your ex-spouse if you don’t take action to prevent this from happening. So don’t leave the way open to a potential claim in the future. Make sure the correct action is taken at the time of the divorce”
For more information, please contact James on 0116 212 1080.
