NSW 5 Years After Separation - Husband with Debt and Inheritance

[vicky evelyn]

Have been separated for 5 years and married for 27. I left my husband with our debt, but left only with my clothes and spare car. I left him with all the household goods in our rented house. I had to get a loan and start again. He has now paid off our debts but says that I am now not entitled to his superannuation because of all the interest he has paid on it.

Our debt was around $20 or 30 thousand. His super is around $150 to 200 thousand, almost 10 times mine. His mother also passed away recently during our separation and he received a $200k inheritance from sale of the house. He has a new partner and has made a point of telling me that her parents are multimillionaires in their 90s and he is going to be a very wealthy man. He has offered me $10k.

We have three children but left the marriage when they were grown up and working. 2 of the children lived with him for a very short while after I left, just a few months.

 

[Sophea]

Hi Vicky, generally inheritances received after separation remain the property of the beneficiary and are not shared with their ex, however there are situations in which a court will decide that it should be included in the asset pool for the determination of a property division. For example if there are very limited funds available in the asset pool, it is more likely that a court will include the inheritance in the asset pool for division, even if it was received after separation, especially where the non-beneficiary partner made a significant financial or non-financial contribution to the relationship.