REYNOLDS & MOORE

In REYNOLDS & MOORE, the wife sought various orders from the husband, including spousal maintenance and a division of property. The dispute concerned the division of assets and liabilities between the parties, including real estate, company shares, a trust interest, and superannuation entitlements. The matter came before Thornton J.

The court was required to determine the appropriate property settlement between the parties, including the division of specific assets such as a property, company shares, and superannuation. Additionally, the court considered the wife's application for spousal maintenance and the ownership of a particular watch. The court also had to address the implications of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) and associated regulations concerning the splitting of superannuation interests.

Thornton J granted the wife leave to amend her application to seek lump sum spousal maintenance of up to $30,000. The court ordered the husband to pay the wife $20,000, with a portion directed to her solicitors. The wife was ordered to transfer her interest in a property, resign as a director of two companies, and transfer her shares in those companies to the husband, all at the husband's expense. The parties were to close joint bank accounts, with the husband retaining the proceeds. The wife was to discharge her liability for a mortgage and line of credit over the property, with the husband indemnifying her. The wife was also ordered to discharge a caveat against the property at her expense. The parties were to surrender any claim to each other's superannuation entitlements. The court declared a watch to be the husband's property. Crucially, the court ordered a superannuation splitting order, allocating $45,000 of the husband's superannuation interest to the wife, with specific provisions for its payment and transfer. The wife's application for spousal maintenance was otherwise dismissed, as were the husband's applications for costs.