WOMEN who pursue their former husbands for multimillion-pound settlements on divorce are not entitled to an automatic half-share, according to Britain’s most senior family judge.

Sir Mark Potter, President of the Family Division, said that in most ordinary cases the “yardstick of broad equality” was right when it came to splitting assets. But when it came to the very wealthy, the “slavish” following of a 50/50 principle was undesirable.

His comments, in an interview with The Times, the first since he took up office a year ago, come as five law lords start to hear two landmark appeals today over how a couple’s assets should be split. The appeals are the latest in a series of prominent divorce cases that have confused the law on dividing assets.

In the past five years, wives have had a better deal from the courts after a House of Lords case in 2000 laid down a yardstick of equality by which the courts apportion wealth. Before that, the courts decided how much a wife would receive on the basis of reasonable needs.

As a result, there have been many well publicised awards favourable to former wives, in turn fuelling bigger demands not just for assets but a share of a husband’s future income, too. In 2004, Karen Parlour, the former wife of the footballer Ray Parlour, was awarded £444,000 a year, to be reviewed after four years.

Sir Mark said that guidance was needed from the House of Lords. However, last week the Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer of Thoroton, ruled out legislation creating a framework, saying that each dispute had to be decided case by case.

In the first of today’s appeals, Alan Miller, a 42-year-old fund manager whose wealth was estimated at £17.5 million, excluding up to £18 million in shares, is challenging an award of £5 million to his former wife, Melissa, 35.

In the second, Julia McFarlane, 44, is appealing over what share she should have of her former husband Kenneth’s future income. On divorce they agreed an equal split of the family capital of £3 million, but could not agree how his net annual income of £750,000 should be divided.

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