Civil Partnership Dissolution

What happens when a civil partnership comes to an end?

As in marriage, civil partnerships must be legally dissolved if the couple decide to end the relationship and the only ground for dissolving the partnership is, like divorce, the& irretrievable breakdown of the relationship. This must be based on one of four facts - which are again identical to those for divorce save for the omission of adultery. The procedure for dissolution is almost identical to that of divorce. Upon dissolution of the partnership the court will make a Dissolution Order.

Again, similar to divorce, the civil partnership can be annulled by the court, in certain circumstances.

To dissolve a civil partnership, it must have lasted for at least one year. The court must be satisfied that the relationship has permanently broken down, to do this you need to prove one of the following facts:

• Behaviour
• Separation of 2 years or more with consent; or
• Separation of 5 years or more
• Desertion

You must make arrangements for any children before you can be considered for a separation order.

If there are children in the family you must decide on the day-to-day care arrangements. The courts can do this if you are unable to reach an amicable decision. They will only step in if it will be in the best interests of the child and can make contact and residence orders. In this case, a Children and Family reporter (from CAFCASS) will become involved.

An application for dissolution or separation will require details of all dependants, care and financial arrangements.

At the end of a civil partnership, as with a divorce, financial matters will have to be resolved and this may include the transfer of property, lump sum orders, periodical payments, pension sharing orders, child maintenance etc.

What will happen to my pension when I get divorced?

Your pension should be taken into account in a financial settlement during a divorce/civil partnership dissolution. You can decide to balance the pension against another asset, such as a property (Pension Offsetting), arrange for some of the pension to be paid to your ex-spouse when you receive payment (Pension Attachment) or split the pension into two at the time of the Divorce/civil partnership (Pension Sharing).

It is important that both parties know the value of their pensions (but you need consent to know the other person's pension value - a pension can be the most valuable asset in a financial settlement, so speak to your Solicitor to ensure that you choose the best option for your circumstances.

What is a CETV?

A Cash Equivalent Transfer Value (CETV) is obtained from your pension trustees to assess the value of your pension. It is this figure which is taken into account for the purposes of calculating the assets available for division when considering a financial settlement following the breakdown of a marriage/civil partnership. The CETV of a pension is of particular importance when the pension is of a high value and/or the couple have been married/in a civil partnership for a substantial length of time. On occasion, it is necessary to obtain the advice of a pensions actuary to prepare various calculations in respect of the pension in order to determine the entitlement of the spouse/civil partner making a claim upon a pension.

What are civil partnerships?

A civil partnership is a recognised, legal union between two people of the same sex, which came into operation on 5 December 2005 with most of the rights, responsibilities and other consequences of marriage. Civil partnership registration in England and Wales is modelled on civil marriage and most provisions are similar or the same. Accordingly, gay or lesbian couples can now publicly register their relationship, showing their commitment to each other and both gain a number of rights and also acquire responsibility for each other.

Such rights and responsibilities extend, as in marriage to all aspects of the relationship, from finances to children. For example, where there are children in the family, civil partnerships enable the second partner to apply for parental responsibility; benefit applications will assess both partners; civil partners have next of kin rights and can now benefit from pension rights, inheritance tax provisions etc. in the same way as a married couple.