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| Pre-nuptial victory for heiress | Pre-nuptial victory for heiress |
| (21 minutes later) | |
| A court ruling over a divorced couple's pre-nuptial agreement could pave the way for such contracts to become legally binding in England and Wales. | |
| Katrin Radmacher, a German heiress, has overturned an earlier court decision to award her ex-husband £5.8m of her £100m fortune despite their agreement. | Katrin Radmacher, a German heiress, has overturned an earlier court decision to award her ex-husband £5.8m of her £100m fortune despite their agreement. |
| Frenchman Nicolas Granatino had agreed not to make a claim if they divorced. | Frenchman Nicolas Granatino had agreed not to make a claim if they divorced. |
| Such contracts are enforceable in Germany, where the couple's was signed, but not in England where they married. | |
| They are also enforceable in Mr Granatino's home country. | They are also enforceable in Mr Granatino's home country. |
| Miss Radmacher, one of Germany's richest women, won a ruling from the Court of Appeal that such contracts should be taken into account by the courts when they divide assets after a marriage fails. | Miss Radmacher, one of Germany's richest women, won a ruling from the Court of Appeal that such contracts should be taken into account by the courts when they divide assets after a marriage fails. |
| 'Broken promise' | 'Broken promise' |
| Miss Radmacher, 39, said she was "delighted" by the decision. | Miss Radmacher, 39, said she was "delighted" by the decision. |
| "Ultimately, this case has been about what I regard as a broken promise," she said. | "Ultimately, this case has been about what I regard as a broken promise," she said. |
| "The agreement was at my father's insistence as he wanted to protect my inheritance - this is perfectly normal in our countries of origin, France and Germany. Like all wealthy parents, he feared gold-diggers. | "The agreement was at my father's insistence as he wanted to protect my inheritance - this is perfectly normal in our countries of origin, France and Germany. Like all wealthy parents, he feared gold-diggers. |
| "As an heir himself, Nicolas perfectly understood this. The agreement gave me reassurance that Nicolas was marrying me because he loved me as I loved him... that we were marrying for the right reasons." | "As an heir himself, Nicolas perfectly understood this. The agreement gave me reassurance that Nicolas was marrying me because he loved me as I loved him... that we were marrying for the right reasons." |
| The couple's pre-nuptial was signed in Germany before the couple married in London in 1998. | The couple's pre-nuptial was signed in Germany before the couple married in London in 1998. |
| The pair's marriage was said to have broken down after Mr Granatino, 37, gave up a lucrative investment banker job in 2003 to become a £30,000-a-year biotechnology researcher at Oxford University. | The pair's marriage was said to have broken down after Mr Granatino, 37, gave up a lucrative investment banker job in 2003 to become a £30,000-a-year biotechnology researcher at Oxford University. |
| They divorced in 2006 and a High Court ruling last year awarded her ex-husband £5.8m. | They divorced in 2006 and a High Court ruling last year awarded her ex-husband £5.8m. |
| Miss Radmacher appealed against that decision and her lawyer, Richard Todd QC, told a panel of three Court of Appeal judges the freedom to agree a contract was "at the heart of all modern commercial and legal systems". | Miss Radmacher appealed against that decision and her lawyer, Richard Todd QC, told a panel of three Court of Appeal judges the freedom to agree a contract was "at the heart of all modern commercial and legal systems". |