Lung and Meridien and Anor (No 2)

This matter came before Waddy J in the context of a dispute between Ms M Lung (the applicant), Ms Q Lung (the second respondent), and Mr Meridien (the first respondent). The core of the dispute concerned the division of property and the allocation of financial responsibilities, particularly in relation to a property identified as the "G property".

The court was required to determine the respective entitlements of the parties to the G property, as well as their liabilities concerning the mortgage debt and other outgoings associated with that property. Furthermore, the court needed to address the separate entitlements of each party to other assets, such as moneys, investments, bank accounts, furniture, shares, motor vehicles, items of personalty, and superannuation, excluding any determination regarding potential rights in real property registered in the name of the second respondent at B, New South Wales.

Waddy J applied principles relevant to property division, considering factors such as the duration of the marriage, the impact on earning capacity, the need to protect a party's role as a parent, and the financial circumstances of cohabitation. The court noted that the marriage of 15 years had not adversely affected the earning capacity of either party, and that the wife had pursued further qualifications with contributions from both parties. The court also acknowledged the wife's primary role in caring for the parties' daughter for the foreseeable future. Crucially, the court found that the first respondent, Mr Meridien, had provided no cogent evidence to support his assertions, leading the court to rely heavily on the evidence presented by the applicant and her sister. The court specifically declined to decide the equities concerning a property held in the name and possession of the second respondent, which was the only property whose value exceeded its secured debts, as both the applicant and the second respondent denied the first respondent had any relevant interest in it.

The court declared that the applicant, Ms M Lung, and the second respondent, Ms Q Lung, were jointly entitled to the G property as tenants in common in equal shares. They were also ordered to be equally responsible for and to indemnify the first respondent, Mr Meridien, in respect of the mortgage debt and all outgoings related to the G property. Otherwise, each party was declared separately entitled to any moneys, investments, bank accounts, furniture, shares, motor vehicles, items of personalty, and the proceeds of any superannuation that they separately possessed or which was registered in their separate names. The orders did not include any determination of legal or equitable rights in the real property located at B, New South Wales, registered in the name of the second respondent. The matter was removed from the pending cases list.