Civil Partnerships for Heterosexual Couples

It was advertised in The Telegraph on 1 January 2020 that Charles Keidan and Rebecca Steinfeld became one of the first heterosexual couples in Britain to get married on the same day new rules came into effect to allow mixed sex couples to also enter into civil partnerships.

There has been wide-spread pressure for some time now to ensure that  hetro-sexual couples who do not want to get married for personal or religious reasons have the option to formalise their relationship and receive legal protections akin to those of married couples, in the same way same sex couples do by entering into a Civil Partnership.  This is now possible and ensures that family law is adapting to how individuals choose to live as a family and importantly, recognises those relationships should be treated equally to those that historically have not been offered any legal protection.

If this change had not happened, those couples would be at risk of not having any framework on which to rely should their relationship break down, and would mean that they sadly face the same issues as cohabiting couples who do not enter into a Civil Partnership. Cohabiting couples are currently still prevented from receiving the other persons income, pension or capital in the event of relationship breakdown and are not offered the same protections as married couples or civil partners. Perhaps the change to rules surrounding Civil Partnerships will also mean that the law will change to ensure there is adequate protections for cohabiting couples and may extend in time to other relationships like siblings and friends who commonly also choose to live together and own property jointly.

This will ensure that family law recognises the diversity of relationships and what the modern family looks like today.

Contact IBB’s family law experts today

IBB Solicitors’ family law practice can provide  expert advice on all childcare and  other family law issues. To contact the family law team please email familylaw@ibblaw.co.uk or call 03456 381381.