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The General Scheme of the Civil Partnership Bill

The Civil Partnership Bill marks a watershed in Irish law and is keenly awaited by many cohabiting couples; the Scheme will establish a statutory mechanism for registration of same-sex partnerships, and establishes the duties and responsibilities of registered partners, and sets out the consequences of dissolution of such partnerships.

Who does the Civil Partnership Bill apply to?
The Bill is of particular significance to gay and lesbian couples in that it provides, for the first time in Ireland, a comprehensive scheme for the legal recognition of same sex relationships. In addition to providing for Civil Partnership Registration for same-sex couples, it will also provide legal certainty as to the status of cohabitation agreements and a legal safety-net to people living in long-term relationships.

The Bill distinguishes between "cohabitants" and "qualified cohabitants". All cohabitants (regardless of the precise duration of cohabitation) will be recognised as entitled to relief under the Domestic Violence Acts, the Civil Liability Acts, the Power of Attorney Act 1996 and the Residential Tenancies Act 2004.

The Scheme will also clarify the law by providing for recognition of cohabitant agreements between unmarried opposite-sex cohabiting couples and between unregistered cohabiting same-sex couples.

Civil Partnership will be open to people aged 18 or over who are of significant mental competence. The parties must be of the same sex and must not be close relatives.

Main Provisions of the Scheme

• A scheme of civil registration of same-sex partnerships (Part 2) together with a range of the rights and duties consequent on registration (Parts 3 to 6);
• Access to a cohabitant's redress scheme giving protection to a vulnerable party at the end of a long-term opposite-sex or same-sex relationship (Part 7);

The Main Effects of the Scheme

• to give legal effect to a range of property, financial and other matters consequent on civil partnership including in relation to maintenance, shared home, succession, taxation, social welfare schemes and pensions;
• to give legal certainty to agreements regulating the financial affairs of cohabitants enabling them, if they so choose, to opt-out of the redress scheme;
• to create a new legal relationship for same-sex couples which may end only on the death of a partner or dissolution by a court

Seeking Family Law Advice

For further information, please contact Malcomson Law by calling 01 8744422 or by filling out an Online Enquiry Form. Your enquiry will be forwarded to a solicitor who specialises in Family Law.

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