Chapter 3 – Property and Financial Arrangements
Section 191: Disputes between civil partners about property
362.This section enables civil partners to refer disputes over property to court. It provides that civil partners may apply to the High Court or to a county court in respect of any question relating to the title to or the possession of property. The court may make such order with respect to the property as it thinks fit, including an order for the sale of the property.
Section 192: Applications under section 191 where property not in possession etc.
363.This section allows one civil partner (A) to make an application under section 191 where the other civil partner (B) no longer has the money or property concerned or A does not know whether B still has the money or property. The power of the court to make orders under section 191 includes the power to order B to pay to A such sum of money as seems appropriate or to make any other order which it could have made under section 191.
Section 193: Applications under section 191 by former civil partners
364.This section allows a former civil partner to make an application to the court in respect of a dispute over property under Section 191 (as extended by Section 192) despite the fact that the civil partnership has been dissolved, annulled or is void (whether or not an order for annulment has been granted). The application must be made within three years of the date of dissolution or annulment of the civil partnership. Where the civil partnership is void but has not been annulled and the parties have ceased to live together, the application must be made within three years of the date on which the parties ceased to live together.
Section 194: Assurance policy by civil partner for benefit of other civil partner etc.
365.This section extends the application of section 4 of the Law Reform (Husband and Wife) Act (Northern Ireland) 1964 to civil partners, so that if a civil partner takes out a life insurance policy to provide for his or her civil partner or children the money payable under the policy is not to form part of the estate of the insured.
Section 195: Wills, administration of estates and family provision
366.This section states that Schedule 14 contains provisions amending enactments relating to wills, administration of estates and family provision to give the same treatment to civil partners as exist for married people.
Section 196: Financial relief for civil partners and children of the family
367.This section introduces Schedule 15, which makes provision for financial relief for civil partners which corresponds to the relief available to married couples in the High Court or a county court under Part 3 of the Matrimonial Causes (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 when they go through divorce, nullity or judicial separation proceedings.
368.Subsection (2) provides that if the effect of rules of law is that provisions for financial relief under Part 3 of the Matrimonial Causes (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 are interpreted as being available in the case of the dissolution of a marriage on the ground of presumed death, then those rules of law will also apply to the corresponding financial provisions in Schedule 15 to the Act for civil partners, with any necessary modifications. This is to allow case law to be available to civil partners which allows for financial relief to be available if the person who was presumed dead is subsequently proved to be alive.
369.Subsection (3) introduces Schedule 16, which provides civil partners with the right to apply for financial relief in courts of summary jurisdiction in a way that corresponds to the rights that exist for married people under the Domestic Proceedings (Northern Ireland) Order 1980.
370.Subsection (4) introduces Schedule 17, which contains provisions for financial relief in Northern Ireland after a civil partnership has been dissolved or annulled or the civil partners have been legally separated in a country outside the British Islands. “British Islands” is defined in the Interpretation Act 1978 (c. 30) as comprising the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.