Devopoulos and Devopoulos

In *Devopoulos and Devopoulos*, Watts J of the Supreme Court of New South Wales was required to determine whether a deed of settlement, entered into by the parties in family law proceedings, was voidable due to alleged misrepresentation and non-disclosure. The dispute arose from a property settlement agreement where the applicant alleged the respondent had failed to disclose significant assets, thereby inducing the applicant to enter into the deed on terms she would not otherwise have accepted.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the respondent's alleged misrepresentations and non-disclosures constituted a material breach of the duty of disclosure owed between parties in family law proceedings, and if so, whether this breach rendered the deed of settlement voidable at the applicant's election. The Court had to consider the nature and extent of the duty of disclosure in the context of family law settlements and the legal consequences of its breach.

Watts J applied the principles established in cases such as *Scollay v Scollay* and *Harris v Harris*, which confirm that a failure to make full and frank disclosure of material assets in family law proceedings can vitiate a deed of settlement. His Honour found that the respondent had indeed failed to disclose certain assets, and that this non-disclosure was material to the applicant's decision to enter into the settlement. Consequently, the Court held that the deed of settlement was voidable.

The Court ordered that the deed of settlement be set aside and remitted the matter for further hearing to determine the appropriate property settlement orders.