Civil Partnerships
What is a Civil Partnership?
Couples, including same sex couples, can register their relationship as a civil partnership in the UK. A civil partnership provides benefits that are not extended to people who are cohabiting. Since 2013, same-sex couples have been legally allowed to enter into marriage, giving them the choice to be married or to be in a civil partnership.
Before entering into a Civil Partnership
If you are considering entering into a civil partnership, Chris Stevenson Solicitors can help you understand the legal implications and help you decide if a marriage or a civil partnership best fits your specific needs. We can advise you as to how to protect your financial position by entering into an agreement prior to a civil partnership. For more information, please consider our pre and post nuptial agreement page (hyperlink pre and post nup page).
Dissolution of a Civil Partnership
The ending of a civil partnership is known as ‘dissolution’. Since the 6th April 2022, it is no longer necessary to attribute blame to your partner in order to obtain the dissolution of a civil partnership. It simply needs to be stated that the partnership has irretrievably broken down.
Once an application for dissolution has been submitted, there is a waiting period of 20 weeks until the conditional order is received, then a further six weeks thereafter before a final order can be requested. During this process there may be disagreements concerning matters such as children, finances and property. Therefore, before starting the dissolution process, it is worth considering mediation which may help both parties come to an agreement on these issues. Please consider our child arrangements and contact and financial settlement pages for further information (hyperlink child arr and contact page).
How Chris Stevenson Solicitors can help you
At Chris Stevenson Solicitors, we can assist you with advice prior to a civil partnership, during the partnership itself or if you are seeking its dissolution. If you would like more information concerning civil partnerships, please do not hesitate to contact our friendly family team on 01302 341243 or enquiries@chris-stevenson.co.uk.