An accountant who said he helped run a cancer charity headed by former Pakistan cricket star and politician Imran Khan appeared to use his wife as a "mere cipher" when dealing with their financial matters, a High Court judge has said.

Mr Justice Norris said he got the impression that Arif Anwar, who ran an insolvency practice, used Sofia Arif "when convenient".

The judge, who has been analysing a money dispute between the couple following the breakdown of their marriage, said it seemed that Mrs Arif had been "simply told what to do".

Mr Anwar, who told the judge he had been chairman of trustees of the Imran Khan Cancer Appeal, filed for bankruptcy months after Mrs Arif filed for divorce in 2011, said Mr Justice Norris.

His insolvency practice had collapsed and the judge said the bankruptcy "may, or may not, have been tactical".

Detail emerged in a ruling after Mr Justice Norris analysed the latest stage of the litigation at a hearing in the Family Division of the High Court in London.

He had been asked to make decisions about the ownership of a £1.75 million house in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire.

Mrs Arif said the house belonged to Mr Anwar, but he said Raziz Rehan, 28, his son from a previous marriage, owned half of the property. Mr Justice Norris concluded that Mr Rehan had a quarter share.

"The wife denied that there ever could have been any such agreement because everything was always treated as belonging to the husband (in whosesoever name it was held)," said Mr Justice Norris.

"I accept that in all probability she was not told of any proposed sharing of the ownership of the property (because the clear impression I have gained from the evidence is that as regards financial matters she was a mere cipher, used when convenient and simply told what to do)."

The judge said evidence had demonstrated that ownership issues involving Mr Anwar were "unlikely to be straightforward".

Mr Anwar had described the ownership of the house in a document, said the judge.

"My wife is holding (the property) as the registered proprietor under a bare trust instrument that she signed in my favour," Mr Anwar had said.

"For over 20 years, since well before the marriage, I was reluctant to hold the legal title to (the property) except as a trustee for others, because my role as chairman of the trustees of the Imran Khan Cancer Appeal ... made me potentially liable for any improper dissipation of the substantial funds ... under the charity's control."

He added: "I agreed to share my beneficial ownership of the property equally with my elder son Raziz, on the basis of which he invested over £500,000."