How final are orders for sale?

Rachel Cooper Coram Chambers

How final are orders for sale? If at the conclusion of a case and after a final order is approved one or both parties wish to change an order for sale is this possible? The power to make an order for sale of a property under s 24A of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 is ancillary to the principal capital order which has been made and is exercisable only where an order for financial provision or a property adjustment order has been made. Section 31(2)(f) of the MCA 1973 provides that orders for sale can be varied but only as to process and not as to the distribution. This article considers the authorities of Omielan v Omielan [1996] 2 FLR 306 and Birch v Birch [2017] UKSC 53 [2017] 2 FLR 1031. The authors provide with the aid of a case scenario examples of how varying an order for sale might work in practice along with advice on practical considerations.

The full article will be published in the March issue of