WHY THE COURT DECISION IN FAVOUR OF A GERMAN MULTI –MILLIONAIRE IS IMPORTANT
The landmark decision of the Supreme Court (20th October) over the validity of a pre-nuptial agreement has seen a German heiress win the battle to keep her £100m fortune, in a move which lawyers say could open the door to such agreements taking their place in English law.
It has taken the Supreme Court seven months to reach the eagerly awaited decision in Radmacher (formerly Granatino) v Granatino [2010] UKSC 42, reflecting the controversial nature of the case and difficult issues involved.
In the case, Mr Granatino, a French banker, and Ms Radmacher, a German heiress, married in London in 1998. Some weeks before the wedding, Mr Granatino and Ms Radmacher had signed a prenuptial agreement in Germany in which each agreed that, in the event of divorce, neither would make any financial claims upon the other.
By 2006 their marriage broke down and they got divorced in London, by which time Mr Granatino had become disenchanted with banking and was studying for a PhD at Oxford on a salary of £30,000.
