A common law husband or wife is a myth. If you and your partner are not married or in a civil partnership you might be surprised to learn that you have very little, if any, legal protection if your relationship breaks down. It does not matter how long you may have lived together or whether…
In these difficult economic times, unfortunately there is yet another cost increase; this time in terms of Court fees. The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) confirmed that it will proceed with increases of 10% to 172 of the 202 fees originally proposed in consultation. These will come into force as from 1st May 2024. The MOJ…
After a very wet March, lots of people are now looking to book their summer holidays and we thought it might therefore be useful to provide answers to some questions we often receive from parents following divorce/relationship breakdown in terms of what they can and cannot do. Do I need permission from my ex-partner to…
If you are involved in an application to the Court in respect of your children, you may be faced with the Court listing the matter for what is known as a Fact Finding Hearing. This is a type of Court Hearing in which evidence surrounding allegations is considered and the Court decides whether or not…
Martin Lewis, the money saving expert has recently reiterated the importance of making a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) and we thought it would be helpful to recap how a Power of Attorney works and why it is important. It is important to distinguish between making a Will which deals with your money and assets…
Planning Together for Children is a resource for parents and carers involved in private law family court proceedings to help them focus on putting children first when making arrangements to share parenting responsibilities. Planning Together for Children replaced the Separated Parents Information Programme (SPIP) on 3rd April 2023. It is a new course and set…
Pension sharing orders divide rights under a pension scheme so that each spouse has their own independent rights under that scheme or under two separate schemes. The pension has to be capable of sharing and the rights themselves must be of a shareable kind. The vast majority of pensions are shareable. The only significant exceptions…
On 6th April 2022 the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2022 came into force changing the process of divorce as we had known it for the previous 50 years. We are now some 15 months after the introduction of the new law and in the main, the new procedure has been an improvement. It is…
It is one of those matters people often put off dealing with, but it is sensible to make a Will so that the people you wish to benefit from the assets you have at the time of your death, actually do. The Rules of Intestacy determine the distribution of a person’s estate where they die…
We thought it might be of interest to shed some light on some common myths regarding Family Law:- Is there such a thing as a Common Law Husband/Wife? No, there is no such thing as a common law husband or wife. Unless you are married the law does not protect you if you simply live…