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Published: 26th June 2017
Current divorce law is now more than 40 years old following its introduction in 1973 and it is feared that whilst society has progressed, legislation hasn’t kept up with today's modern families. Almost 75% of divorces are now filed on a ‘fault-based ground’, with a large proportion of those being for unreasonable behaviour of one of the parties, leading for calls to reform current outdated divorce laws.
Published: 23rd June 2017
Draft legislation for a new Domestic Violence and Abuse Bill was announced during the Queen's Speech on 21 July 2017, with a view to transform the Government's approach to tackling domestic violence in England and Wales.
Published: 19th June 2017
A recent ruling in the Court of Appeal has raised questions over the long-standing equal sharing principle, following a successful appeal which saw an ex-wife lower her husband's payout to just £2 million from assets totalling £5.45 million.
Published: 12th June 2017
During the AFCC Annual Conference in Boston, USA, leading international family lawyers David Hodson and Professor Patrick Parkinson announced that there is to be a new scheme to help international families.
Published: 5th June 2017
Prime Minister Theresa May has recently said that she believes her party hasmade considerable progress ‘towards tackling domestic violence’, however she would like to take further steps against the issue.
Published: 24th May 2017
The most senior family judge in England and Wales, Sir James Munby, has suggested that the issues that couples have regarding the splitting of their money should be a completely separate process to their divorce proceedings. He also called for new online divorce proceedings, whilst referring to the government’s 'lamentable history of procrastination' where the reforming of laws surrounding divorce is concerned.
Published: 18th May 2017
After a marriage that lasted 23 months, a woman has been awarded a £4.25 million payout by a family court judge. The pair, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, married in Las Vegas in October 2011 before separating in September 2013.
Published: 24th April 2017
The appeal court has decided to back the initial ruling that a banker’s contribution to his marriage was not exceptional, and therefore Randy Work has been ordered to pay his ex-wife, Mandy Gray, half of their fortune. The Americans met in 1992 before marrying in 1995, having two children during their marriage, both of which are now teenagers.
Published: 14th April 2017
After a recent survey by YouGov, it has been revealed that cohabiting couples fear ‘unfair’ settlements should their relationship breakdown, and want changes to the law that would see them granted the same rights as married couples.
Published: 4th April 2017
An estranged couple embroiled in a dispute over a £500,000 holiday home have spent a combined £800,000 on their battle in the High Court in London, which Mr Justice Holman has described as ‘phenomenal’.
Published: 20th March 2017
In a test case within the Supreme Court, it has been heard that denying equal pension rights to a husband of a same-sex marriage is sexual discrimination when compared to the rights of a heterosexual wife.
Published: 14th March 2017
The ex-wife of a Laura Ashley boss has argued that she made an equal contribution to her marriage with her former husband, stating that she helped to generate the wealth of her husband by playing the role of a ‘traditional’ wife. The 70-year-old ex-wife is fighting over millions with ex-husband Khoo Kay Peng, 78, in the Family Division of the High Court in London.
Published: 1st March 2017
A heterosexual couple campaigning for a same-sex civil partnership have narrowly lost their fight in the Court of Appeal. This comes after they challenged a ruling that stated they were not able to form a civil partnership, based on the legal requirement of a civil partnership requiring that the couple are two people of the same sex. The judges involved in the case did suggest that there was a potential breach of their human rights and, in the verdict, it was suggested that the government needsmore time to decide the future of civil partnerships.
Published: 23rd February 2017
The Government have confirmed to the House of Lords that they have no plans to reform current divorce law to introduce a 'no-fault divorce' system in England and Wales, despite widespread calls from family lawyers and other organisations to do so.
Published: 16th February 2017
A unanimous decision in the Supreme Court has allowed Denise Brewster an appeal, announcing that the requirement of her and her late cohabiting partner, William McMullan, to make a nomination to the pension scheme should not apply. This decision will mean that Ms Brewster will now receive a survivor’s pension.
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