Sandra Davis' Week: Golubovich v Golubovich

Golubovich v Golubovich 

Delivering the lead judgment on Tuesday in Golubovich v Golubovich [2010] EWCA Civ 810 Lord Justice Thorpe concluded with a withering assault on "the rich who fight to establish priority" between competing jurisdictions to try their divorces.

The facts are unimportant other than the husband (who came from a hugely wealthy Russian family) and his Russian wife had lived in London following their marriage.  When the marriage broke down he invoked the jurisdiction of the Russian Courts and she the English Courts. The husband won the race to a decree by it seems allegedly forging documents. He was then subjected to a Hemain injunction precluding him from taking any further steps in Russia to rectify his divorce there. Nevertheless having been made aware of these shenanigans and the existence of the injunction the Russian Court on his application granted him a divorce.

The wife's reaction was to seek an order from the English Courts refusing recognition of the Russian...

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