header-logo header-logo

I do, do I?

02 June 2011 / Edward Heaton
Issue: 7468 / Categories: Features , Divorce , Family
printer mail-detail

Edward Heaton courts the question: when is a marriage a marriage?

In the vast majority of divorce cases, there is no issue over the validity of the marriage in question, which is usually established to the satisfaction of the court by the production of a marriage certificate. This is not, however, always the case. Practitioners need to be alert to the fact that the term “marriage” means different things to different people. In certain circumstances, a marriage which may not, on the face of it, appear to satisfy the requirements under English law may still be treated as a marriage upon, for example, the death of one of the parties or the breakdown of the relationship in question for the purposes of determining the issue of the division of capital and income.

In the recently reported decision in the case of Al-Saedy v Musawi [2010] EWHC 3293 Fam, [2010] All ER (D) 292 (Oct), Bodey J reviewed briefly the common law presumption of marriage dating back to the 19th century and, while

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

DWF—19 appointments

DWF—19 appointments

Belfast team bolstered by three senior hires and 16 further appointments

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Firm strengthens leveraged finance team with London partner hire

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Double hire marks launch of family team in Leeds

NEWS
In this week's NLJ, Steven Ball of Red Lion Chambers unpacks how advances in forensic science finally unmasked Ryland Headley, jailed in 2025 for the 1967 rape and murder of 75-year-old Louisa Dunne. Preserved swabs and palm prints lay dormant for decades until DNA-17 profiling produced a billion-to-one match
Charlie Mercer and Astrid Gillam of Stewarts crunch the numbers on civil fraud claims in the English courts, in this week's NLJ. New data shows civil fraud claims rising steadily since 2014, with the King’s Bench Division overtaking the Commercial Court as the forum of choice for lower-value disputes
Bea Rossetto of the National Pro Bono Centre makes the case for ‘General Practice Pro Bono’—using core legal skills to deliver life-changing support, without the need for niche expertise—in this week's NLJ
Charles Pigott of Mills & Reeve reports on Haynes v Thomson, the first judicial application of the Supreme Court’s For Women Scotland ruling in a discrimination claim, in this week's NLJ
The Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in July that overturned the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, once poster boys of the Libor and Euribor scandal. In NLJ this week, Neil Swift of Peters & Peters considers what the ruling means for financial law enforcement
back-to-top-scroll