We specialise in Family Law, Divorce, Property, Conveyancing, Probate, Wills and Powers of Attorney.
We specialise in Family Law, Divorce, Property, Conveyancing, Probate, Wills and Powers of Attorney.
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.
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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:
A civil partnership is a totally civil procedure performed by a registrar; in approved premises. In practice, the procedure and ceremonies tend to be almost identical to civil marriage.
The main difference is that, although the option is available, there is no requirement for the exchange of vows in a civil partnership and registration takes place when both partners have signed the document. Whereas, with a civil marriage the marriage takes place upon the exchange of vows and the register is signed afterwards. In practice, both ceremonies often involve the exchange of vows followed by the signing of the register.
Signing the document can be private as it does not have to be part of a ceremony.
To register a civil partnership, there are rules for eligibility and consent, you must give notice of your intentions and the details of each partner. The notice is published by the registration authority for a period of fifteen days. The registration can take place after this fifteen day period, and your notice is valid for twelve months. This procedure is almost identical to that for civil marriage.
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.
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We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone at Dale & Co. for the excellent service you provided during our sale and subsequent purchase in Cambridgeshire. Your thoroughly professional handling of the situation ensured that despite being faced with a chain of seven our move was as stress-free as it could have been. We wouldn't hesitate in recommending your services.
The usual superb service from Dale & Co. Nicola was extremely helpful, friendly, and professional. Would definitely recommend to others!
Justine was extremely helpful and fast at responding to queries. I would reccomend her!
Justine was so helpful and kept me informed every step of the way. Thanks for everything!
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An Excellent Service!
Rory Silkin dealt with my matter; an excellent service!
Very helpful, would recommend to others!
An Excellent Service. Would recommend to others!
An Excellent Service
We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone at Dale & Co. for the excellent service you provided during our sale and subsequent purchase in Cambridgeshire. Your thoroughly professional handling of the situation ensured that despite being faced with a chain of seven our move was as stress-free as it could have been. We wouldn't hesitate in recommending your services.
The usual superb service from Dale & Co. Nicola was extremely helpful, friendly, and professional. Would definitely recommend to others!
A fast and efficient service which I would highly reccomend!
Justine was extremely helpful and fast at responding to queries. I would reccomend her!
Justine was so helpful and kept me informed every step of the way. Thanks for everything!
All my correspondence was answered promptly and the staff were very helpful. Thank you for the great service!
Many thanks for the excellent service from Dale & Co.!
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An Excellent Service - Recommended
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Excellent Probate Service
Totally painless procedure . Thank you. Peace of Mind.
A very friendly service
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Thank you for the tea towel. I now have quite a collection.
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A very efficient Will writing service, with a very professional lady.
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Thank you for keeping us up to date and thank you , Petra, for helping us navigate the vagaries of selling a home with less than complete information!
Friendly and helpful service from the team at Dale and Co that helped us navigate a potentially tricky problem.
Good Service - Recommended
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Thank you or looking after us so well over the years
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Thank you for all your help through my recent Divorce process. An excellent service - will use again.
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You need every confidence when you consider any legal process - to buy property, make a Will or Divorce. Call in and see us; meet someone from the team who will support you. Have a fresh coffee and help yourself to our free guides to understand more about our services. We are confident you will like us - we offer a first consultation free.
You will know who is doing your work by name - and they will know you. Our aim is to build trust and loyalty with you.
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