McBurney and Reddy

This matter concerned orders made by Judge Phipps in relation to property settlement between a husband and wife. The dispute centred on the division of a jointly owned property and other assets.

The court was required to determine the terms of the property settlement, specifically how the matrimonial home would be dealt with, the distribution of personal property, and the allocation of liabilities. The orders addressed the refinancing of a mortgage, the transfer of interest in the property, and the potential sale of the property if refinancing did not occur.

The court ordered that the wife was to refinance the mortgage over the property by a specified date, thereby discharging the husband from any liability. Upon successful refinancing, the husband was to transfer his interest in the property to the wife. If the wife failed to refinance by the due date, the property was to be sold, with the proceeds applied first to sale costs, then to discharge the mortgage, and any remaining balance to the wife. The husband was also to retain specific items of personal property, and each party was to be solely entitled to other property in their possession, with a specific deeming of possession for chattels within the real property. Each party was to forgo claims to the other's superannuation and be solely liable for any liabilities encumbering property they received.