Family Law
From 6 April 2022, new legislation has bought significant changes in the divorce process. The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 replaces the previous “five grounds” for divorce, and therefore allows couples to divorce without...
In certain situations, such as being a victim of domestic abuse , an individual may feel they need protection from another person who is “connected” to the abuse. In this case, they are usually able to apply for a Non-Molestation Order. A...
A declaration of parentage states whether a named individual is, under English law, another individual’s parent. This can then be presented to the General Register Office, who have discretion about whether the father should be named on the birth...
The classic scenario is that the person comfortably housed in the property wants to stay there for as long as possible and the other person is desperate to sell perhaps because they are living in rental accommodation and unable to move on until they get...
Although often assumed, no matter how long you and your spouse have been separated for, this does not automatically mean that you are divorced. It is essential to follow the divorce process and apply for your Decree Nisi and then Decree Absolute. ...
Irretrievable breakdown of marriage is the sole ground for divorce in England and Wales. However, to establish this ground, a ‘fact’ must be proven. One of these facts is adultery. Same sex couples, however, are unable to use...
If you are not married and the property is in your sole name then your cohabiting spouse does not generally have an interest in that property. However, where a cohabiting partner makes financial contributions to the property for example paying...
A ‘Barder Event’ describes a circumstance when an unexpected and unforeseen event invalidates the fundamental basis upon which a financial remedy order was made. If such criteria are satisfied, the Court can revisit and alter the previous...
As the law stands currently in order to get divorced before 2 years have elapsed since you and your spouse separated you or your spouse has to rely upon a fault based fact to evidence the irretrievable breakdown of your marriage to the court. This...
In order to change a child’s name who is under the age of 16, whether that be forename or surname, all those with parental responsibility have to be in agreement. If those with parental responsibility are in agreement, then simply a change...
In order for your divorce proceedings to progress to the Decree Nisi stage you have to be able to prove to the court that your spouse has received your divorce petition and has had the opportunity to respond to it. It can therefore be very...
An engaged couple may consider preparing a pre-nuptial agreement documenting what should happen to their assets in the event that their marriage comes to an end. Such an agreement may be contemplated, in particular, in the following...
The family court has recently been asked to consider a mother’s appeal against an order made in Child Arrangements Proceedings that she should contribute to the costs of maintaining the parties’ child’s contact with their father. ...
If you wish to separate from your spouse and deal with the financial matters arising from your separation there are a range of options as to how this can be done: Reaching a direct agreement- some parties reach an agreement directly as to how they wish...
Separation and divorce can be a stressful time and the process itself may seem daunting or overwhelming at the outset. For many people, they will not have been through the process before and so the steps needed are all new and unknown. At George Green...
The short answer to this is no. The Court will want to know the other party is aware of the proceedings and has the opportunity to engage. However, if they have been personally served with the paperwork and still do not engage, the Court can...
If you are in a cohabiting relationship with another person, you will need to disclose the assets and income of the cohabitee within the financial disclosure process. The Form E has a question relating to new partners and failure to answer the question will...
If you cannot attend a family law court hearing, the Court could make orders in your absence. You may also have it pay the other parties wasted legal costs for the ineffective hearing. This could be avoided by an application to adjourn the hearing...
Although something that many of us do not want to think about at the time, it is very important to protect assets when getting married, especially where a business interest is concerned. A Pre-Nuptial agreement is a contract entered into before marriage...
Over recent years there has been a drastic rise in people cohabiting without getting married. Many believe that cohabitants are afforded the same legal rights on separation as married couples getting a divorce . Unfortunately this is not the...
