Divorcees chased to pay debts of ex

A High Court judgment released yesterday closes a loophole that gave spouses protection over their share of assets ordered on divorce.

Now, if a wife or husband is bankrupt their spouse will be exposed to action by creditors over assets won in a contested divorce.

Bankruptcy trustees will be able to pursue the non-bankrupt spouse for up to five years.

The ruling also applies to divorce orders made in the past five years and is expected to affect at least a fifth of the 120,000 people expected to file for bankruptcy this year.