How Likely?

Padstow

This is a different theme to the usual posts, so apologies to those who are genuinely facing bankruptcy.

My ex had three profitable businesses which I had provided the finance for him to start many years ago. So I had the means and he had the talent.

Divorced last year due to him meeting someone else, business partnership severed and maintenance awarded to me.

He is doing everything possible to avoid paying the Spousal maintenance, including applying for bankruptcy.

Two businesses have been put into his new lady's name. The third, profit before tax £40,000, has closed due to non payment of rent and baliffs going in. He simply stopped paying the rent since we divorced, rather than pay maintenance from the profits.

He also has 100k equity in the former marital home where I am living, but was ordered to pay the mortgage until sold. He is in breach of the order and mortgage is now three months in arrears.

Of course I know that there are penalties for non disclosure/moving assets etc, but are they actually enforced?

He's going to declare bankruptcy as not owning anything. Flat and car leased, businesses moved to another person and get away with it?
Will he get away with it?

wildheart83

"Of course I know that there are penalties for non disclosure/moving assets etc, but are they actually enforced?"

In a word yes. Whether they will in this case I can't comment on, but they are enforced and there are hefty penalties for hiding and transferring/disposing of assets. Remember your ex-oh will be required to provide accounts etc for his businesses.

debtinfo

yes they are, if you feel that he is not disclosing something then you should inform the OR in charge of his case

Padstow

debtinfo wrote: »

yes they are, if you feel that he is not disclosing something then you should inform the OR in charge of his case

How would I find out though? I don't know where he'd file.
I'm not looking to drop him in it for the sake of it, rather I'm existing on the basic state pension whilst he's put everything into his partners name and living well on that.

fermi

Once he's bankrupt you can find out here:

Check the Individual Insolvency Register

Select the "all courts" and "all offices" option if you need to do the widest search.

When you find him in the list of cases, click on his name in blue and it will take you to full details of the case. Including the details of the court, OR's office dealing with it, if/when an IP is appointed their details etc.

minicooper1961

Hi Padstow, sorry to hear of your situation, I am in a not to dissimilar one, and unfortunately mine has got away with what he has done so far despite his OR and mine knowing full details, he has even been able to rent out the marital home and pocket the proceeds {I was forced into BR by his} I am still discovering stuff but he has been very clever and covered his backside. Good Luck Mini xxx

Padstow

fermi wrote: »

Once he's bankrupt you can find out here:

Check the Individual Insolvency Register

Select the "all courts" and "all offices" option if you need to do the widest search.

When you find him in the list of cases, click on his name in blue and it will take you to full details of the case. Including the details of the court, OR's office dealing with it, if/when an IP is appointed their details etc.

Thanks so much for that, interesting. I was beginning to despair of being forewarned until I read that bankruptcy can be annulled.

"
The court's power to annul a bankruptcy order is set out at section 282(1) of the Insolvency Act
"The court may annul a bankruptcy order if it at any time appears to the court-
(a)that, on any grounds existing at the time the order was made, the order ought not to have been made."
http://www.osbornes.net/articles/bankruptcy-and-divorce.aspx

That covers what I'm experiencing I believe, that it would have been self imposed intentionally.

Padstow

minicooper1961 wrote: »

Hi Padstow, sorry to hear of your situation, I am in a not to dissimilar one, and unfortunately mine has got away with what he has done so far despite his OR and mine knowing full details, he has even been able to rent out the marital home and pocket the proceeds {I was forced into BR by his} I am still discovering stuff but he has been very clever and covered his backside. Good Luck Mini xxx

Sorry for you woes Mini.

I don't think so much clever, as devious, and the court system weak.

Having gone through the court via divorce, I'm amazed at what can be got away with. e.g I found out this week that ex didn't actually own one of his businesses at the time of Final Hearing a year ago, even though his accountants supplied all figures for it as though he did. He'd already gifted it to the next woman three months previously!

My barrister didn't pick up on it and his wasn't telling.
To even try and take it back to court is prohibitively expensive, with no guarantee of success and loser pays costs.
Should be perjury if the court had any clout, and send him down for a day to focus his mind. A few cases like that reported and we'd soon see less lying.

Hey, but miss a payment on the TV license and all might of the law bears down on you.

I found a good article of how ex spouses use bankruptcy but maybe too late for you. It's in the post above.
Thankyou for your good wishes.

downsizer3

My ex was / is on the verge of bankrupcy and certainly in a domestic sense you can't transfer an asset to your partner within 3 years of BR without it being taken into account for debt repayments.
Your maintenance / mortgage is a debt so his assets ought still to be a part of the equation if he goes BR.
Thats the case in Scotland anyway ( from a very limited understanding).

Padstow

On researching today, in the USA, SM and CM on bankruptcy come before anything else!

I do believe that transferring assets in the face of bankruptcy is a no, no but the courts should act! See how Mini was turned over above.

The most frustrating thing for me, was all I ever wanted was to stay in the FMH and have an income through working to pay for it through the local business, leaving him with two others.

He was furious with my award in court.

Roll on till December last, he decided he was not going to pay me anymore.
He then could have given me the local business and I would have been independent, working the business and paying the mortgage which he should, (CO) but is not doing.

Clean break. Goodbye Padstow, sink or swim. That's what I wanted.

What did he do instead? Stopped paying rent on a profitable business and let the baliffs in, staff laid off! Staff we'd had for many years. Anything rather than me prosper.
He now has no equity at all to come as all used up being so bloomin nasty.
Why so bitter and vindictive? I wasn't having affairs.
Now he's threatening bankruptcy.

He could have had two profitable businesses with his new missus.
I could have one, and a clean break from him.
Our daughter seeing her mum well treated would have been friends with him and her, rather than funding my court battles as she's doing.

I nearly made it. I heard the local business was doomed by his efforts. Got down yesterday and already new tenants were in, so too late.

I don't understand those who leave for a better life but still torture the one left behind.

Taxes and maintenance are hated by all, but they have to be paid.
If your new life is so wonderful then suck it up and rejoice!

debtinfo

Hi Padstow, the OR does act where they are able to do so, if you look around you will see threads of people that have been prosecuted and sent to prison and also ones where they have had their bankruptcy restrictions extended. all you can do is provide the evidence to the OR and let them take it from there, Also note that if the OR is investigating it can take a long time and they also do not report back to you, they only report to the court.

Every case is different so you cant rely on one persons experience as a guide (there may be reasons why nothing has been done in mini's case). Also bare in mind that you are very close to the situation and there are 2 sides to every story, the court is there to provide an objective view of whether something is lawful or not, not necessarily wherther one side or the other thinks it is fair