Do you accept a matter with no China connection?

No. We only act where the matter has a China connection: a party in China or holding Chinese nationality, domicile, habitual residence or identity documents, or property, a company interest, evidence, a document or an enforcement step located in or directed at China. Where everything — the parties, the assets and the documents — sits outside China and no Chinese court or authority needs to act, a lawyer in that jurisdiction is better placed to help and we would not be the right firm.

Cases / Asset tracing

UK spouse unreachable and concealing assets: preservation, default judgment and cross-border coordination

Asset tracing · Published 2026-10-10 · Reviewed by Yuanjia International Family Law Team

An anonymised firm matter. Names, exact figures and identifying details have been removed; the legal substance is unchanged. Outcomes depend on the facts of each matter and do not indicate a repeatable result.

Anonymisedclient identity

Asset Tracingmatter type

Cross-borderChina element

A British husband became unreachable and appeared to be concealing assets, while his Chinese wife brought divorce proceedings in China. She needed both the divorce and a support position she could actually rely on.

Background

The difficulty

Service had to be effected without a known address, the extent of the husband's assets was unclear, and any support order would be difficult to enforce against someone living in the UK.

What was done

Preservation was applied for over the China-situated assets, the case proceeded on public-notice service, and the support position was structured to be satisfied out of Chinese assets rather than through ongoing payments. The China–UK enforcement position was assessed so that the client understood what could and could not be given effect.

Outcome

The divorce was granted in the husband's absence, and the support and property positions were secured against the Chinese assets, avoiding reliance on cross-border enforcement.

Why this pattern recurs

Where assets are concealed and the other party is abroad, the case is usually won or lost on preservation rather than on the merits. A default judgment against someone who has already moved the assets is of limited value.

If your situation looks similar

Send the facts in one message: where the marriage was registered, where each party lives now, where any children are, and where the assets are held. That is usually enough to say whether a China route exists, and there is no charge for that first review.

Figures and outcomes described here relate to a specific matter and do not indicate a repeatable result.

Points to take away

Where assets are concealed and the other party is abroad, the case is usually won or lost on preservation rather than on the merits. A default judgment against someone who has already moved the assets is of limited value.
The divorce was granted in the husband's absence, and the support and property positions were secured against the Chinese assets,

United KingdomSpouse unreachableConcealed assetsPublic-notice serviceDefault judgmentCapitalised supportCase note

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