Businessman is told: Pay your ex-wife or you are going to jail

A JUDGE has warned a businessman with debts of more than €4million that he faces jail if doesn’t start paying some of the €22,523 in maintenance arrears he owes his ex-wife.

Judge Patrick Durcan sounded his warning at the Family Law Court in Ennis, Co. Clare, after hearing that the woman had not received any maintenance money from her exhusband in three-and-a-half years.

At a previous court appearance, Judge Durcan said that the man was rubbing his ex-wife’s nose in it by driving around in a new ’17-registered car. The man’s solicitor, William Cahir, said the car belongs to the business he works for, not his client.

The maintenance payments were agreed in a High Court divorce settlement. Now, Judge Durcan has told the man that he faces jail unless he makes proposals at an adjourned court date in December to address the €22,523 in arrears to his ex-wife.

The judge said that the man is earning €487 a week after tax ‘and is not putting one single cent towards the maintenance of his wife’.

The man’s ex-wife said: ‘I am sick and tired of this. I owe so much money to my family. They are supporting me... I just want what I am entitled to. I don’t want him to go to jail – this is not what I am here for.’

However, Judge Durcan said: ‘If you will make an application before me to imprison this man, I will do it.’ The woman replied: ‘Well, I will, judge.’

Mr Cahir said his client is in the process of disposing of eight properties that might realise a total of €750,000. He said his client owes AIB €3.5million, the Revenue €355,000 and €240,000 in legal fees from the High Court family law matter. Judge Durcan said: ‘This is interesting but irrelevant to this woman’s case. There is nothing in this for her.’

Mr Cahir said that once the assets are disposed of, his client will be under the threshold for a Personal Insolvency Arrangement. He said that under a debt settlement arrangement, a spouse’s maintenance can be protected.