First Plus Financial Group v Hewett [2010] EWCA Civ 312, [2010] All ER (D) 248 (Mar)
Court of Appeal, Civil Division, Jacob, Leveson LJJ and Briggs J,
24 Mar 2010
The non-disclosure by a husband of an affair, when seeking to persuade his wife to join him in a charge of their matrimonial home as security for his separate debts, has been found sufficient to afford his wife with a defence of undue influence or misrepresentation to subsequent possession proceedings brought by the finance company.
Lightfoot (instructed by Eversheds LLP) for the claimant. Simon Redmayne (instructed by Hatch Brenner) for the defendant.
The defendant wife, her mother and her then husband purchased a property using funds released to the wife upon the sale of the mother’s home. The property was remortgaged in 2002. In 2003 the husband encountered problems with his credit cards. Unbeknownst to the wife, he had also started an affair.
A mortgage was concluded with the claimant to refinance the husband’s debts. He explained to the wife that the transaction was necessary to preserve the family home, and promised greater financial
