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16 June 2011
Issue: 7470 / Categories: Case law , Law digest
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Divorce—Bankruptcy

Mekarska v Ruiz and another [2011] EWHC 913 (Fam), [2011] All ER (D) 14 (Jun)

It was settled law that a court had to consider whether, on any grounds that had existed at the time that the order was made, that order ought not to have been made. A court might annul a bankruptcy order if it concluded that, on the date of that order, the bankrupt had been able to pay his debts. It would not normally be right to annul a bankruptcy order unless, at least, it was shown that as at the date of the order the debtor was in fact able to pay his debts, or had some tangible and immediate prospect of being able to do so which had since been fulfilled or would so have been but for the order itself.

A wife’s home rights endured until they were brought to an end by an order of the court, whether in the divorce proceedings or by an order in the bankruptcy proceedings under s 335A or s 336(2)(b) of the Insolvency Act 1986.

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

Fieldfisher partner appointed president as LSLA marks milestone year

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Firm promotes two lawyers to partnership across employment and family

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Firm promotes five lawyers to partnership across key growth areas

NEWS
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Thousands more magistrates are to be recruited, under a major shake-up to speed up and expand the hiring process
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
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