Has our approach to maintenance changed forever, asks Charlotte Doherty
The case of Wright v Wright [2015] EWCA Civ 201 generated a storm of press attention. The media have suggested that this case heralds the end for joint lives maintenance orders and that women should return to work following a divorce, rather than looking to their ex-husband for long term financial support.
Whatever the legal significance of Wright (and it needs to be remembered it was only a refusal of permission to appeal) it certainly seems to have struck a chord with many, both inside and outside the family justice system.
Of more interest to practitioners perhaps, is the decision of Mr Justice Mostyn in SS v NS (Spousal Maintenance) [2014] EWHC 4183 (Fam). While Mostyn J found that it would be impossible to adopt a formulaic approach to calculating spousal maintenance, he suggested that it should be calculated on the basis of needs and the preference should invariably be for an extendable term rather than joint lives orders. It will be interesting to see if Mostyn J’s obiter comments and guidance
