Millionaire wins ex-wife-payment appeal

A wealthy British builder won his appeal today over a court ruling that he must pay more money to the woman he divorced nearly 30 years ago.

Dennis North, 70, was ordered last year to pay his first wife, Jean £202,000 by a family judge who heard she had “fallen on hard times” after embarking on a lifestyle she could not afford.

Lord Justice Thorpe, giving his ruling in the UK’s Court of Appeal today, said: “The prodigal former wife cannot hope to turn to a former husband in pursuit of a legal remedy, whatever may be her hope that he might, out of charity, come to her rescue.”

However he did agree that Mrs North, 62, may have entitlement to a “modest award” which they will assess by the end of next week.

The couple were divorced in 1978 – a year after he found out she was having an affair with the man she later went to live with.

In 1981 he made a financial settlement with Mrs North, whom he married in 1964, buying her a house and investments.

Over the years, he increased her assets so that she would have been able to live comfortably for the rest of her life.

But in 1999, she sold up and moved to Australia where she saw her capital dwindle because of bad investments and what the court was told was a lifestyle beyond her means.

A district judge awarded her a lump sum of £202,000 (€302,300) in April last year after agreeing that Mrs North’s money troubles had nothing to do with her former husband and he had no further responsibility towards her.

Since his divorce from his first wife, Mr North has prospered and his wealth is now estimated at between £5m (€7.5m) and £11m (€16.5m), the court was told.

Mr North, who still lives in the former matrimonial home outside Sheffield, brought up the three children of the marriage and has two children by his second wife.

He asked the Court of Appeal to quash the award.