Recently published data from HM Courts and Tribunals Service (‘HMCTS’) has shown a marked increase in the number of divorce applications since the new no-fault divorce system was introduced on the 6th of April. The data shows that in April 12,978 new divorce applications were issued, of which 2,771 were made jointly by both parties […]
Your financial remedies case may not be kept private
Financial remedy proceedings, in which the court is asked to decide the divorce settlement, will by their nature involve the disclosure of details of the parties’ financial arrangements. Such matters are normally of course kept private, but a recent decision by a High Court judge may mean that privacy in financial remedy proceedings may no […]
What can we learn from the Johnny Depp and Amber Heard case?
Two top Hollywood film stars washing their dirty linen in public may be the stuff of dreams for the popular media, but it is surely a disaster for those involved. For the last month Johnny Depp and his former wife Amber Heard have been locked in a defamation court battle, streamed to eager audiences around […]
What Is A Cohabitation Agreement and How Could It Protect Me?
About one fifth of couples who live together in the UK do so without getting married or entering into a civil partnership. Sadly, many of those relationships will break down. When they do, each party will obviously have to seek their financial independence. Few rights for cohabitees Under the law as it presently stands in […]
What Happens to Pensions on Divorce?
In many divorces, pensions are one of the most valuable assets, often second only to the former matrimonial home. It is therefore essential to know how they are dealt with on divorce. But all too often those going through divorce do not appreciate their entitlement when it comes to pensions, with the result that they […]
No-fault divorce arrives at last
After at least three decades of campaigning for it, and one false-start, on the 6th of April a new system of no-fault divorce will finally be introduced in England and Wales. Since the early 1990s Resolution, the association of family lawyers, has been campaigning to replace the ‘blame game’ of the current (old) divorce system […]
Providing for a child where the parents were not married
It may come as a surprise to many, but in recent years the parents of almost half of all children born in England and Wales were not married or in a civil partnership. If the relationship of those parents should break down they will obviously have to make arrangements for the financial provision of those […]
Sorting out cohabitee property disputes with TOLATA
Property disputes between separating couples are usually of course resolved within divorce proceedings. But what if the parties were never married? How does a cohabiting couple resolve a dispute over the occupation or ownership of the property in which they lived together? There is a legal procedure available to people in such circumstances (and also […]
Is my spouse entitled to half my business?
It is obviously not unusual for someone going through divorce to have an interest in a business, whether as a sole or part owner. The divorce may be a very worrying time for them – after all, the business is one of their assets, and the divorce court divides all assets between the parties. Will […]
What is Parental Responsibility?
‘Parental responsibility’ is a term that regularly crops up in family law proceedings, but which is often quite misunderstood. So what exactly is parental responsibility, and how is it acquired? Legal definition Parental responsibility is defined as “all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority which by law a parent of a child has in […]
