Case No. NP20D02617

: I accept W’s complaint that H on occasions drank more than she approved of, and that he should have given weight to her feelings. Midweek he would abstain or have a modest amount of wine in the evening but at weekends and when in company and not driving he might over the course of an evening consume a bottle of wine. He accepts that this might make him louder than otherwise would be the case. W says that the various incidents created an intimidating and threatening home environment. W says that there was a cycle of argument: cold shouldering; being ‘sent to Coventry’; love bombing; and making up, all conducted by H. 39.W became convinced that H suffered from alcoholism, anger management issues, and Asperger’s syndrome. To show that he was not dependent on alcohol, H volunteered to and did abstain from alcohol for a month. I find that there was never any evidence of him being dependent on alcohol. Likewise, there has never been any evidence that he suffers from Asperger’s or any similar such condition.40.Dr Jones cast helpful light on these accusations. She explained that W was desperate to remain in the relationship with H and in order to rationalise that, she created the scenario whereby H suffered from a condition from which she could help him be ‘cured’ and thus rectify what she saw as the defects in their marriage. This intense desire to retain the relationship explains a lot of what happened when the separation agreement and PNA were being discussed in 2018. 41.Following the incident on 25 March 2018, W left H’s home and consulted solicitors. It is absolutely clear from the solicitor’s file that:i)It was W who made the running in the negotiations with H;ii)She set out what she regarded as her essential terms, namely the clearing of the mortgages on the two properties that she owned;iii)She was the one who took the lead in the change from there being a separation agreement to a post nuptial agreement;iv)She was well advised throughout by her solicitor who had said that:a)She should not enter into an agreement without there being full disclosure; andb)The agreement would not be in her interest particularly if the marriage were to endure for many years.42.I would not have found the absence of disclosure to be a vitiating factor. W knew what assets H had and that he was relatively speaking a wealthy man. H had expressed disinclination to file a Form E, as he had been requested, but there is no suggestion that he had failed to answer any questions put to him about his means. The solicitor’s second reservation about the agreement was well founded. So concerned was the solicitor that she required W to sign a disclaimer.