Ed Heaton & Anna Heenan consider the Law Commission’s consultation on matrimonial property, needs & agreements
On 11 September 2012, the Law Commission published a consultation paper on Matrimonial Property, Needs and Agreements. This supplements the Commission’s 2011 consultation on marital property agreements (often known as pre- and post-nups).
The consultation paper requests the views of the public and practitioners alike on two fundamental issues relating to the law of finances on divorce and the dissolution of a civil partnership (although, for ease of reference, this article will only refer to divorce going forward). The issues are as follows:
- The law relating to financial needs on divorce (and, in particular, the extent of an individual’s ongoing obligation to support their former spouse and the level of that support); and
- The legal status of “non-matrimonial property” (and, specifically, what constitutes non-matrimonial property and the extent to which such property should be treated separately from property which is the product of the marriage).
Since the consultation paper raises complex issues and the consultation paper itself extends to 123 pages, the scope
