A question of property ownership with

05/02/2018 - 04:33

A question of property ownership with ��/UK law...An �� man, who lives permanently in the UK, marries a British woman and he buys a second property in Italy without her name on the deeds, but it is bought "di state civil conjugate ed in commune di bene" which means "in a state of marriage and in common with both spouses". They later divorce, she gets the UK house in the divorce settlement, but makes no claim on the property in Italy. They later both re-marry and both live permanently in the UK. The previous wife is now claiming ownership of 50% of the property in Italy. Is this something which she would have to go to court to claim or is it just a fact that she owns 50%. Is it 50% of the value of the estate value when they divorced, or the value as it stands? Which law will apply, �� law (the property is in Italy and the husband is ��) or UK law, they both live in the UK and got married in the UK and bought the property whilst in the UK. Thanks

Topic

Property

Comment

The property is in ITaly so �� law takes precedence. On paper she is 50% owner, BUT it all depends on the wording of the divorce - if it divided 'all' the estate then there is still paperwork to do in ITaly to take her name off the property. If it wasnt nominated at all in the divorce then she is still half owner according to �� law, unless you get it sorted out by a UK court.

Thank you for taking the time to explain that, that is a very clear answer. So basically I would need to see a copy of the divorce papers to see how it was worded. What wording would mean that she could have no further claim on the property as it wasn't part of a written agreed agreement?

Hi, this is only based on my experience and knowledge and only by reading the few sentences about the matter. When the couple bought the house in Italy they were married in comunione dei beni. That means the house is authomatically of shared ownership. Howver, while they are married the property is seen and legally considered as whole. Later on they got divorced. This causes that although they own the 50% of the property each, they can in theory already decide to sell half, meaning that the other owner can buy it out or the seller can sell it to someone else, for instance a relative. The divorce simply "divide" the property in two and make the two shares somewhat indipendent from the other. Obvioously such thing does not make one of the owner abke to sell his half disregarding completely the rights and priorities the law gives to the owner of the other half. With regards to the value of the property or of the 50% of it, it will refer to the market value as it stands now, becuase her right of ownership has been an ongoing right and the divorce has not cancelled it. It has actually made it more readily exercisable.I hope this is helpful, but I still recommend you to seek legal advice or get in touch with a notary here in Italy, they should be able to clear your doubts upon examining the documentation you have got. Let us know how it goes and if you need any help with talking to some of the professionals you may have to deal with here in Italy.Take care.