Thursday October 28, 2010 at 9:03pm
Or should it be civilianise me”? Or “be civil to me”? Whatever the right proposal may be, it certainly doesn’t have the same ring (no pun intended) as “Will you marry me?” What am I rambling about? A heterosexual couple are launching a legal bid to become civil partners. Tom Freeman and Katherine Doyle don’t want to get married but hey want their union to be formally recognised in the eyes of the law. The problem with the law at the moment is that civil ....
Wednesday October 27, 2010 at 2:39pm
Comedy stars Dawn French and Lenny Henry have been granted a divorce on the grounds of his "unreasonable behaviour", various media outlets have reported this week. Of course, all stories I have seen talk about the mythical “quickie” divorce as usual. I don’t think anyone wants to listen when we tell them that it simply doesn’t exist. Is there another way we can manage this message? Instead of fighting to get all people to use the right terminology, should we ins....
Friday October 22, 2010 at 4:16pm
A landmark ruling this week gave pre-nuptial agreements a vote of confidence. While the agreements, drawn up by couples before marriage to set out how their assets will be divided if they should divorce, are not strictly enforceable in law, they are taken seriously by courts when a settlement is being discussed.
Their validity was thrown into doubt when French banker Nicolas Granatinio went to the High Court to overturn a pre-nuptial agreement he had signed with heiress Katrin Radmacher ....
Friday October 22, 2010 at 6:08am
The debate on the Family Justice Review is hotting up – but it is still leaving thousands of people feeling cold, including me, because of just how far we still have to go before any real prospect of changes. In a debate this week, family law expert Baroness Deech again struck out, calling the current system "out of date" and "out of step" with the rest of the EU, arguing its shortfalls are leading to high litigation costs and have a negative impact on families. "T....
Wednesday October 20, 2010 at 3:45pm
It has been a phenomenon that we have definitely seen at Woolley & Co but I have wondered what is behind it. There are more over-50s, an age group perhaps we would expect to be less comfortable with divorce if only for historical reasons when it was less commonplace, filing for divorce.
Now a survey by older persons’ organisation Saga has looked into why this might be happening, with some interesting results.
Figures show that 28 per cent said they divorced because their partner w....
Wednesday October 13, 2010 at 10:15am
There has been a rise in interest in the media in the last week or so about the role mediation plays – or can play – in divorce proceedings. This is because of the countdown to the publication of the Family Justice Review, something billed as a far-reaching analysis of how the courts deal with families. Initial findings of the Family Justice Review Panel are due to be published “soon” though don’t expect any definite recommendations until this time next year. The re....
Tuesday October 12, 2010 at 2:57pm
In a Blog back in August, I discussed the outline of a letter I'd sent to Nick Clegg who'd invited views on the divorce process. I am pleased to say that he wrote a pleasant letter in reply and although I can't quote this from it, I also understand that significant changes are afoot.
I think these are relevant and important issues for us all to expect:
it may well be that not only will we be able to help our clients avoid having to give
grounds for divorce, we will go beyond what people re....
Monday October 11, 2010 at 12:11pm
I took a test this week and found it asked some tough questions of me. This was not an academic test. I’ve had enough of those in my life and thankfully I can say that the bulk of those are well behind me now. Now I think about it, test is too strong a word. It was just a simple assessment of the way I deal with things. Here’s a taste: • Do you have a tendency to criticise others? • Do you keep things bottled up and then eventually explode at tiny irritation? • Do you ....
Wednesday October 6, 2010 at 9:20pm
I listened with interest to a debate on You and Yours on Radio 4 on Tuesday about divorce and separation. The wide-ranging item ably covered a full deck of topics, from children's rights and a review of the current guidelines by Sir Nicholas Wall, to collaborative law and mediation. It is rare for a subject so obviously close to my heart to get so much air time so I have to give a hearty thanks to Radio 4 for highlighting such a swathe of issues. It was obviously promoted by comments made ....
Monday October 4, 2010 at 9:05am
I hoped beyond hope it had now died away the remainder of the wrangling over the high-profile divorce of Katie Price and Peter Andre would be settled with dignity behind closed doors. However, I read in reports today that the estranged couple will face each other in court this week when details of their marriage and reasons behind the split will be laid bare. Each has lined up friends and family members as witnesses to back their cases. In a writ, Andre claims damages for comments made in a maga....