Oscar Olu Williams, 62, represented himself at a hearing in the Family Division of the High Court yesterday after his ex-wife Melanie accused him of being in contempt of court and asked a judge to commit him to prison.
He told Mrs Justice Parker that he did not have the £2,000 to £3,000 he would need to pay for a barrister to represent him at the hearing and was “waiting for money to come in from clients”.
She said she took Ms Olu Williams’ complaints seriously.
But she said she was giving Mr Olu Williams a “respite” because she was concerned about him not having legal representation when facing the possibility of prison.
These are difficult cases but the courts' patience will only last so long. The ex-wife has an excellent barrister who we regularly use, Mr McCourt from 1KBW chambers so we await with interest the next instalment of this enforcement process.
Mr Olu Williams is a serial defaulter,” barrister Christopher McCourt, who represented Ms Olu Williams, told Mrs Justice Parker. “Mr Olu Williams is a highly intelligent and sophisticated businessman who has been in business for some 40 years.” Mr McCourt said Mr Olu Williams was “manipulative, devious and obstructive”. He said Ms Olu Williams was in “dire straits financially” because of Mr Olu Williams’ behaviour. But Mrs Justice Parker said she had a duty to ensure fairness and thought that she would be failing in that duty if she did not adjourn the hearing to give Mr Olu Williams a chance to find legal representation.
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