Ex-wife of leading barrister claims she is having to survive on benefits while he lives in a £1.6million home
Artist Catherine De Renee says she was evicted from her rented home and forced to take her daughter out of private school as she cannot afford the payments
The ex-wife of a top lawyer says she is on benefits, whilst he lives in luxury in a £1.6 million home, due to their "unfair" divorce settlement.
Artist Catherine De Renee, 38, was awarded £72,500 of marital assets after she split with millionaire QC, Jason Galbraith-Marten QC, 49.
Although he still pays £9,600-a-year in child support, his ex says she is forced to get by on state handouts and is more than £50,000 in debt.
Meanwhile, he lives with his new wife in the Fulham home he once shared with Ms De Renee.
Ms De Renee says it has left her and their eight-year-old daughter are "in a predicament of real need".
They were evicted from their rented house and she had to take their daughter out of her private school as she could not afford it.
Her barrister, Nicholas Yates, asked the Court of Appeal for a fairer deal.
He said: "She resides in rented accommodation and derives her income from two sources, namely state benefits and child support. She also has debts of over £50,000.
"There was in this case no independent assessment of whether the settlement was fair.
"The agreement should not leave one party in a predicament of real need."
But a top judge has now ruled that Mr Galbraith-Marten met his side of the bargain and should not pay a penny more.
Lady Justice Black told London's Appeal Court: "This was a short marriage, though there was of course a child born.
"There was nothing to show that the settlement was unfair.
"This court is not here to provide a top up for every foreign divorce."
Ms De Renee, an Australian citizen, paints "sensual" female portraits which she says create a "lingering eroticism".
Her ex-husband is one of Britain's best known lawyers who represented the BBC in the 'ageism' row with dropped presenter, Miriam O'Reilly.
The BBC later came in for criticism after it emerged that it paid Mr Galbraith-Marten £45,000 for the 12-day hearing.
Ms De Renee has battled through both the Australian and UK legal systems in a bid to re-open the divorce settlement.
Neither of the formal couple spoke at the court hearing.