Rich husbands told: Divorce now to beat new law on splitting pensions

Rich husbands with £1m-plus pensions are rushing to divorce their wives before a new law on pension splitting comes into force.

Rich husbands with £1m-plus pensions are rushing to divorce their wives before a new law on pension splitting comes into force.

Executives, city traders and even rock stars are hoping to protect their pensions by filing for divorce before the December 1 deadline when the courts will be able to divide a couple's pension down the middle.

Mark Harper, a member of the Law Society's family law committee, said he was involved in a number of cases in which he was advising his clients to petition before the deadline. Husbands who have deliberately poured all their wealth into their pension schemes stand to lose the most.

Liam and Noel Gallagher, the Oasis brothers, have spent a reported £12m on pensions. But their estranged wives are likely to be in very different financial positions. The quick divorce between Liam and Patsy Kensit means she will be unable to take advantage of the new rules while Meg Mathews, because of the delay in her divorce from Noel, will be allowed to claim a slice of her husband's pension.

David Davidson, head of family law at the London law firm Charles Russell and author of Pensions and Marriage Breakdown, said many of the City pensions at stake were in excess of £3m. He added: "There will be lots of cases from Mr Blair's Middle England of husbands in their late 40s who have acquired very generous pension rights of perhaps £1m, as well as those working for organisations like the police and the civil service."

James Pirrie, of the Solicitors' Family Law Association, said a City whizkid in his mid- 30s, married to a career woman but with no children, may also want to beat the deadline.Under the current law the courts will settle the divorce by giving the wife a share of the assets and maintenance payments but cannot touch the pension.

"If the wife gets another job then the maintenance will be reduced but the husband will get to keep his pension," Mr Pirrie said.

Latest figures kept by the Principal Registry of the Family Division of the High Court show that divorce rates are actually down from last year. Experts believe this is because seven out of ten divorces are brought by women who are waiting until after the deadline.

Mr Davidson said wives could still gain a share of the pension if they defended the divorce and then filed their own "fresh petition" after the deadline. That would permit the courts to apply the new legislation when considering the pension assets of the husband.