Problem
A marriage had ended between a wealthy businessman and his wife (our client). The husband had provided significant financial support during the marriage to his wife and her teenage child. During happier times, the husband and wife had changed the child’s surname to be the same as their married name. Under Scottish law, spouses are required to provide financial maintenance to each other and also to any child accepted as a child of the family. This is called aliment.
The husband argued that the sum sought by the wife for herself was not fair and reasonable. He also argued that he had not accepted his wife’s child as a child of the family, and that the child’s natural father alone should be responsible to financially provide for the child. The wife was unable to claim maintenance for the child through the Child Maintenance Service because the husband had not legally adopted the child. The child’s natural father lived abroad and had very limited income. He had paid minimal and irregular child support throughout the child’s life.
Advice
We argued in court that the ongoing financial support at the level sought was reasonable and necessary. It would allow our client and the child to remain in the family home and meet their monthly costs during the negotiations about the parties’ financial separation. We demonstrated that the husband had sufficient income and resources to pay the sum of aliment sought. We established that the husband had paid for the child’s clothes, holidays and extra-curricular activities throughout the marriage. He had actively promoted the change of the child’s surname to his own surname after the parties married.
Outcome
The court awarded interim aliment, payable on a monthly basis to support both the wife and child. The court agreed that the husband had accepted the child as a child of his family and accordingly agreed that he required to financially support the child too.
