Civil Partnership – Family Lawyers Dot Co
By virtue of the Civil Partnership Act 2005 same-sex couples are able to register as civil partners. This enables the parties to gain most of the rights of a married couple.
Those couples who do register their partnership enjoy the following rights and obligations:
the obligation to support each other and the children of the family financially
the obligation to pay child support in the same way as married partners
protection from domestic violence
exemption from Inheritance Tax on property that passes between partners
recognition of the partnership under the inheritance and intestacy (dying without a Will) rules
entitlement to pass on bereavement benefits and benefits of occupational pensions to a surviving partner
access to fatal accident compensation.
If the couple have not entered into a Civil Partnership, they will be treated in law as any cohabiting heterosexual couple.
Civil Partnership Dissolution
As with marriage, certain Civil Partnerships will break down. The process of bringing a Civil Partnership to an end (Dissolution) is very similar to Divorce and has certain implications including finance, children, tax and benefit implications. The Court have the power to make property and maintenance orders.
As with Divorce, the only ground for dissolution of a Civil Partnership is that the partnership has irretrievably broken down. This is proved by establishing the existence of one of four facts:
Your Civil Partner has behaved in such a way that it would be unreasonable to expect you to continue live with him/her. Your Civil Partner has deserted you for a continuous period of two years or more. You have been living apart from your Civil Partner for two years or more and your Civil Partner agrees to the dissolution of the Civil Partnership. You have been living apart from your Civil Partner for five years or more. Consent from your Civil Partner is not necessary here.
If you instigate the Dissolution procedure, you are known as the Petitioner because you petition the judge for a Dissolution. The Dissolution Petition is a written document outlining the reasons why you wish to dissolve the partnership. Your partner is the Respondent in the case because they will need to respond to the Petition.
Your Civil Partnership certificate and the Dissolution Petition will be lodged at the County Court. The information from your Certificate will be included in the Dissolution Petition. At the end of the Dissolution procedure, your Civil Partnership certificate will be retained by the Court. The Court will provide you with a Dissolution Certificate. This certifies the Civil Partnership has been dissolved.
There are 3 main steps to ending a Civil Partnership:
File a dissolution petition you have to apply to court for permission to end your civil partnership, and show reasons why you want to split up. Apply for a conditional order if your civil partner agrees to the petition, youll get a document saying theres no reason you cant divorce. Apply for a final order this legally ends your civil partnership you need to wait 6 weeks after you get the conditional order before you can apply.
Generally, the Dissolution procedure is as follows:
Your Dissolution petition, statement of arrangements for the children, Civil Partnership Certificate and fee or fees exemption form are lodged at Court following your approval. The proceedings will be issued and given a case number and the documents will be served upon your Civil Partner by first class post. In addition to those documents, your partner will receive an Acknowledgement of Service which your Civil Partner must complete and return to the Court within 14 days indicating they have received the Dissolution papers and whether or not they intend to defend the proceedings. Should your Civil Partner not return the acknowledgement of service within the time limit we will then consider alternative methods of service. Upon receipt of the completed acknowledgement of service we will then prepare an affidavit (a sworn statement) on your behalf to confirm that the contents of the petition and any statement of arrangements for the children are true and correct. This will be lodged at Court with a request for a date for pronouncement of the decree nisi. The District Judge will decide whether you are entitled to a Dissolution of your Civil Partnership.
As with Divorce, Dissolution of a Civil Partnership is only one step. There may be issues regarding children, property and finances. The Court will deal with these matters separately and we will guide you through the process should these matters apply to you.’
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