Despite the catchy headlines about “quickie gay divorce”, the formal ending of the civil partnership between comedian Matt Lucas and his partner Kevin McGee is technically called a “dissolution” rather than a divorce.
It was one of 30 which were approved in one go by the court at the end of October. The numbers dissolved at once are a reminder that civil partnerships have more in common with traditional marriage than a ceremony at the beginning. There is, of course, no reason why the dissolution statistics should be any different, nor why the longevity (or lack of it) of civil partnerships – 18 months in this case – should vary from that of anyone else.
The legislation permitting civil partnerships came into force in December 2005. For nearly all purposes, including inheritance and pensions, same-sex couples are in the same position as heterosexual couples. That includes the principles on which assets are divided on a dissolution. The star of Little Britain has presumably seen his income increase substantially over that 18 month period and will be in no different position from a high-earning husband when it comes to sharing out the assets.
You may be interested in the statistics on civil partnerships published by the Office of National Statistics. It is not particularly surprising that the numbers of new civil partnerships fell by nearly half after the first year. Many of those who entered them in the first year were presumably people who had lived together for some time. There were only 42 dissolutions in the whole of 2007, so the fact that 30 others were dissolved at the same time as Matt Lucas’s suggest that the numbers are going up steeply. We will see when the 2008 figures are published.
If you are contemplating entering into a civil partnership or wanting to dissolve one, the people to contact at Ambrose Appelbe are Lisa Bolgar Smith or Felix Appelbe on 020 7242 7000.
Home
