H v H

The Full Court of the Family Court of Australia, comprising Ellis, Lindenmayer and Guest JJ, considered an appeal concerning the division of property between a husband and wife. The primary dispute revolved around the correct method for valuing the net asset pool, specifically in relation to a loan provided by the wife's mother to the wife.

The central legal issue before the Full Court was whether the loan from the wife's mother should be treated as a liability of the wife, thereby reducing the net value of the property pool available for division, or whether it should be disregarded. This required the court to consider the principles governing the determination of a party's financial resources and liabilities in property settlement proceedings.

The Full Court applied the principles established in *Jenkin and Jenkin* [1998] FamCA 163, which affirmed the approach taken in earlier cases such as *Antmann and Antmann* (1980) FLC 90-908, *Af Petersens and Af Petersens* (1981) FLC 91-095, and *Biltoft and Biltoft* (1995) FLC 92-614. The court reasoned that a loan from a third party, such as a parent, is generally treated as a liability of the recipient spouse and therefore reduces the net value of the property pool, unless there is evidence to suggest it is not a genuine debt or that repayment is not intended or expected. The court found that the loan in this instance was a genuine debt and should be treated as a liability.