Family Court – Full Disclosure or Risk Prison

Full Disclosure or Risk Prison

Nicola Furmston, Senior Family Solicitors at Kerseys Solicitors explains that telling a lie in court is perjury but how often do we hear that someone has been sent to prison for it?

Not often and this might suggest that it is not considered to be serious or that the court doesn’t care. But thinking that would be a mistake.

It’s common for people to rue the fact that they have to give full financial disclosure to the family court in the course of divorce proceedings.

Full Financial Disclosure

Financial openness is not a part of every marriage or civil partnership. However no matter how tempting to lie a little, or even a lot, people should not give into temptation.

The seriousness with which the court regards lying was reiterated in June 2021 when an ex-husband was sent to prison for nine months for doctoring bank statements.

He wanted a reduction in the maintenance he was paying his ex-wife and sought to persuade the court that he was not as well off as he actually was. The lie was spotted by an eagle eyed barrister.

The husband, whilst said not to be a liar on the scale of one or two well-known celebrity perjurers, is nevertheless now languishing at Her Majesty’s pleasure.

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