header-logo header-logo

Big money divorce case heads to Europe

07 June 2007
Issue: 7276 / Categories: Legal News , EU , Divorce , Family , Human rights
printer mail-detail

Alan Miller—who last year was ordered by the House of Lords to hand over £5m to his childless wife of three years—is taking his case to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).

Miller’s lawyers will argue that the level of discretion available to the courts has meant the law has become so confused and unpredictable that the payout to his ex- wife breached his right to property under Art 1 of the First Protocol of the European Convention on Human Rights.

However, James Freeman, solicitor with Speechly Bircham, says the ECtHR may not be receptive to this argument.
“If the ECtHR is to entertain Alan Miller’s claim, one conjectures that the arguments put to it will have to be along the lines that the current English divorce law is either so swingeing or so unpredictable that it amounts in its essence to a breach of his right to peaceable enjoyment of his possessions,” he says.

He adds that the English courts have not proved receptive to such line of reasoning in

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Carey Olsen—Kim Paiva

Group partner joins Guernsey banking and finance practice

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

Morgan Lewis—Kat Gibson

London labour and employment team announces partner hire

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Foot Anstey McKees—Chris Milligan & Michael Kelly

Double partner appointment marks Belfast expansion

NEWS
Is a suspect’s state of mind a ‘fact’ capable of triggering adverse inferences? Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Smith of Corker Binning examines how R v Leslie reshapes the debate
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has not done enough to protect the future sustainability of the legal aid market, MPs have warned
Writing in NLJ this week, NLJ columnist Dominic Regan surveys a landscape marked by leapfrog appeals, costs skirmishes and notable retirements. With an appeal in Mazur due to be heard next month, Regan notes that uncertainties remain over who will intervene, and hopes for the involvement of the Lady Chief Justice and the Master of the Rolls in deciding the all-important outcome
After the Southport murders and the misinformation that followed, contempt of court law has come under intense scrutiny. In this week's NLJ, Lawrence McNamara and Lauren Schaefer of the Law Commission unpack proposals aimed at restoring clarity without sacrificing fair trial rights
The latest Home Office figures confirm that stop and search remains both controversial and diminished. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Parpworth of De Montfort University analyses data showing historically low use of s 1 PACE powers, with drugs searches dominating what remains
back-to-top-scroll