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Civil Partnerships

Civil partnerships give you certain rights and obligations with regards to your relationship. Judge & Priestley can advise you as to your entitlements.

Kelly Sharman

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Family Law

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Family Law Specialists

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Personal Support

As with divorce, the only ground for dissolution of a civil partnership is that the relationship has irretrievably broken down. The law changed on 6 April 2022, meaning that the requirement to establish one of the facts, such as unreasonable behaviour or a period of separation, in support has been removed. To apply for a dissolution, you must have been in the partnership for more than 12 months.

Anyone applying to dissolve their civil partnership can do so individually or jointly with their partner. The Court will issue the Application and after a minimum period of 20 weeks, the applicant(s) will confirm that they wish the Application to continue and apply for the Conditional Order. This is the penultimate order. Six weeks and one day after the Conditional Order being made, the Applicant(s) can apply to the Court for the Final Order, although you should not do so without first seeking advice as to the implications. Once that is granted, the civil partnership is dissolved.

To dissolve a civil partnership, you must go through a process similar to, but separate from, divorce. You will need to ask the court to dissolve your civil partnership.

What is the dissolution process?

To dissolve a civil partnership, you must go through a process similar to, but separate from, divorce. You will need to ask the court to dissolve your civil partnership.

How long does dissolution take?

Straightforward dissolution proceedings will therefore take at least six months (26 weeks). The intention behind the minimum periods is to allow the parties a period of reflection and to endeavour to agree practical arrangements for the future. Disagreements about the finances involved can prolong the process considerably.

Financial provision on dissolution

The financial claims that one partner can make against the other on dissolution of a civil partnership are essentially the same as divorcing couples. The factors to be taken into account by the court are also similar. The Court will look at the resources available to the parties, the parties’ needs, the standard of living enjoyed during the civil partnership, the age of each civil partner, the duration of the civil partnership, any mental or physical disability of either civil partner, the contributions which each civil partner has made or is likely to make in the foreseeable future to the welfare of the family, the conduct of each civil partner, and the loss of a dependant’s pension and similar rights.

Pre-civil partnership agreement

Just as with marriage, those entering into a civil partnership should consider whether they need to attempt to safeguard any assets before entering into the civil partnership. A pre-civil partnership agreement (the equivalent of a pre-nuptial agreement) can be entered into specifying how the parties intend to conduct themselves financially and otherwise, and their intentions as far as any pre-owned assets and any assets acquired during the civil partnership are concerned as well as how other assets such as inherited property should be treated.

The same considerations as for a pre-nuptial agreement apply so that both parties must have legal advice, enter into the agreement voluntarily and the agreement must be entered into well in advance of the civil partnership ceremony if it is to have any chance of being upheld on dissolution of the civil partnership.

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