The Supreme Court’s decision in Standish brings long-overdue guidance on a question that has tripped up countless divorce lawyers: when does wealth one spouse brings into a marriage really become shared?
In Standish vs Standish, the husband introduced £77.8mn of premarital wealth into the marriage, and following professional advice, moved a substantial portion into his wife’s name.
The husband’s sole aim was to secure tax relief to preserve those funds for the children, not to share ownership with his spouse.
The wife disputed that, launching an appeal to claim half of the funds.
The wife was unsuccessful in the Court of Appeal initially but pursued her claim further in the Supreme Court.
Last week the Supreme Court ruled in favour of the husband, dismissing the wife’s appeal and confirming despite the legal title of the assets passing to the wife, the funds remained non-matrimonial.
In practical terms, this ruling helps to clarify the thorny issue around when premarital assets become marital — a process often called matrimonialisation — and signals a departure from any assumption transferred wealth becomes the couple’s automatically.
Instead of looking at whose name an asset is in, courts must look to the original source and underlying intent.
This means wealth managers and family lawyers will need to work together more closely than ever.
Clients who move large sums for business or tax reasons must document why they did it, who they discussed it with, and how they treated the money day to day.
That way a court will be better placed to decide whether those millions are a joint asset or a private nest egg.
The judgment also distinguishes between passive and active contributions.
Market‑driven growth on premarital investments will retain its separate character unless the couple intentionally agree to pool gains.
By contrast, profits derived from a spouse‑run business expansion or joint property development will look and feel like shared equity.
This clarity offers practitioners a new framework for advising clients on portfolio structuring.
Implications for legal and financial teams
Following this judgment, we may see a shift in how teams support families through divorce.
Rather than leaving paper trails as an afterthought, lawyers, accountants, and financial advisers will plan transfers together from the start, and we may see a rise in prenuptial and postnuptial agreements as clients seek to regulate their finances.
Early divorce meetings will not just skim over bank statements but explore why each lump sum moved.
Collaborative protocols will ensure every memo and meeting note becomes part of a cohesive narrative, rather than scattered evidence.
It also underscores the growing role of technology solutions to automate tracking, the value of regular client training sessions and the need for a cultural shift towards proactive risk management in family wealth affairs.
Advisers and legal teams will need to work closer with financial planners to help clients map out their financial futures and plan for the worst.
No doubt there will be an increase in carefully recording an asset’s origin and we will need to make sure we advise clients on the importance of careful record-keeping.
Regardless, of course, the court will retain the power to draw on non-matrimonial assets where one spouse’s needs cannot be met from the joint pot to ensure fairness.
However, for high-value separations where plenty of wealth is available, Standish delivers a clear message: intent is everything.
Divorce will never lose its human toll. Emotions run high and assets often represent more than money.
Advisers must continue to treat clients with empathy, guiding them through difficult conversations about why they want to keep certain wealth separate or pool resources for a shared future.
Divorce is never easy, and these rules may at first appear unforgiving.
Yet, Standish marks the start of a new era in family finance where fairness and certainty are not at odds.
By anchoring outcomes in carefully recorded intent, the judgment offers clients clarity about what they can expect if their marriage ends.
Advisers who step up now will turn paperwork into peace of mind delivering real value in a world where the record you keep will speak louder than any courtroom argument.
Joanna Farrands is a partner — family at Moore Barlow
