It is not uncommon for family members or friends to have the following arrangements:-
- parents to loan to their child and their spouse monies in order to purchase a property
- obtaining a loan from a sibling or a friend in order to purchase a share in a business or set up a new business
- parents providing monies to the child and their spouse in order to purchase a property and in return expect to be taken care off and having a roof for the remainder of their lives
- jointly purchasing an investment property with a sibling or a friend, however the property being registered in one parties name, due to issues with obtaining joint finance, as a result of one parties adverse credit record.
This is not an exhaustive list, there can be numerous other scenarios when transactions occur between family and friends or even business partners and may never have been documented in the proper legal manner. In those circumstances, consideration should be given as to whether those third parties should be joined as a party to the financial remedy proceedings. In order for the court to determine the true ownership of the property before the divorcing couple agree or the court determines the division of the matrimonial assets.
You may also require legal assistance, if for instance your sibling transferred property to your name, and their spouse issued an application for the property transfer to be undone or set aside. Or your sibling’s spouse may issue a claim against you, due to their belief that your sibling had deliberately purchased properties in your sole name, even though they had made significant financial contribution, in order limit the divorce claim. There are also number of other variables where you can be forced to respond to proceedings, or otherwise you may lose your legal or beneficial ownership in the asset.
This is a complex and specialist area of law, and we have significant experience and expertise and would highly recommend that you contact us at the earliest, or otherwise delay could prejudice your case.
Contact us today to find out more or to arrange your free initial 30 minutes consultation with one of our family lawyers.