Wellesley-Cole v Wellesley-Cole

Facts

A cruelty petition. At first instance Beoku-Betts J applied the balance of probabilities. The Court of Appeal was asked what 'satisfied' in the Matrimonial Causes Act requires.

Issue

What is the standard of proof of cruelty?

Held

Sir Samuel Bankole Jones P rejected the balance of probabilities. The standard is higher than the civil standard, and not as high as the criminal standard.

Principle

Because the Act requires the court to be satisfied, a cruelty case is not decided as an ordinary civil claim. The standard the Court of Appeal stated sits between the two.

Why it matters

State the holding, and then the criticism. Bucknill LJ in Bater v Bater, on which the President relied, had accepted the criminal standard. An intermediate standard is difficult to apply evenly. Adultery, by contrast, stays at the Ginesi standard.

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