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Annulment Of Civil Partnership

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Under English law, Court can annul a civil partnership on the basis that the civil partnership is void or voidable. Annulment (sometimes known as ‘nullity’) is a different way of ending a civil partnership. Annulment of civil partnership is a decree (court order) by the family court that a civil partnership was not legally valid or had become legally invalid. Under English law an annulment of civil partnership may be granted by the family court if you can show that the civil partnership:

  • was never legally valid (‘void’)
  • was legally valid, but meets one of the reasons that makes it ‘voidable’

Specialist Annulment Solicitors

Our expert team of annulment solicitors in London are specialists in dealing with annulment of civil partnership in England & Wales. Our annulment solicitors have wealth of knowledge and experience of successfully handling nullity petitions for annulment of civil partnership.

Thinking of getting your civil partnership annulled and need legal help and assistance from annulment solicitors? Contact our specialist team of annulment solicitors in London, Manchester or Birmingham for fast, friendly, reliable and fixed fee legal services for your annulment petition. 

Ask a question to our annulment solicitors for free advice online for annulment of civil partnership or submit an online request to schedule an appointment for detailed legal advice concerning your petition to annul your marriage or civil partnership.

What Are Grounds For Annulment of Civil Partnership

You’ll need to show that the marriage or civil partnership:

  • was never legally valid (‘void’)
  • was legally valid, but meets one of the reasons that makes it ‘voidable’

Void Civil Partnerships (Civil Partnership Not Being Legally Valid)

You can apply to annul a civil partnership if it was not legally valid in the first place, for example:

  • you’re closely related to the person you registered civil partnership with
  • one or both of you were under 16
  • one of you was already married or in a civil partnership

If a civil partnership was never legally valid, the law says that it never existed. However, you may need legal paperwork (a ‘decree of nullity’) to prove this - for example if you want to get married again or register your civil partnership again.

Voidable Civil Partnerships

You can annul a civil partnership for a number of reasons, such as:

  • it was not consummated - you have not had sexual intercourse with the person you married since the wedding (does not apply for same sex couples)
  • you did not properly consent to the civil partnership - for example you were forced into it
  • the other person had a sexually transmitted disease (STD) when you registered civil partnership
  • the woman was pregnant by another man when you registered your civil partnership
  • one civil partner is in the process of transitioning to a different gender

When Can You Annul A Civil Partnership?

For a family court in England & Wales to have jurisdiction to annul your civil partnership, you or your civil partner must have either:

  • lived in England or Wales for at least a year
  • had a permanent home in England or Wales for at least 6 months

Unlike divorce or dissolution of civil partnership, you can apply for annulment in the first year of your marriage/civil partnership or any time after. However, if you apply years after the marriage or civil partnership, you might be asked to explain the delay.

How Long Does The Annulment Process Take?

This varies from court to court and from case to case, depending on the complexity of the case. An annulment of civil partnership process can take up to 6 months. However, in complicated case, the process can take much longer than 6 months and time would vary depending on the complexity of the matter.

Financial Settlement Upon Annulment Of Civil Partnership

Financial settlement is an arrangement under which a couple’s assets and financial affairs are separated upon annulment of marriage or civil partnership. In England and Wales, the act of annulment of marriage/civil partnership itself doesn’t put an end to the financial relationship between you and your partner. An application for financial settlement is made to the family court by completing application form A.

Obtaining a financial settlement when you are annuling your marriage or civil partnership is important because outstanding financial claims may come back to disrupt your lives even years after your annulment has been finalised. This is because in England and Wales, even when your marriage or civil partnership is annulled, you still retain the ability to make financial claims against your ex and vice versa, and there’s no time limit for making these. This is why it’s crucial to put your financial affairs in order and have a binding court order stating what your financial arrangements with your ex husband or wife are.

How Can We Help With Annulment Of Marriage Or Civil Partnership?

Our specialist team of annulment solicitors is aware of the sensitivity in matters involving annulment of civil partnership and that every individual is in a different situation. To make your life easier, you can seek expert legal advice and representations from our specialist annulment solicitors at Sunrise Solicitors. Our expert team of annulment solicitors are highly trained and experienced in all aspects of annulment laws and court procedures and will guide and support you each throughout the court process to annul your civil partnership. We will cut through the legal jargon and ensure you understand exactly what’s happening at all times. Our team of experienced annulment solicitors will provide the required legal help and guidance with step by step procedure for getting annulment of your civil partnerhsip in the UK.

Our team of annulment solicitors will advise and assist to cater for your individuals needs. We will discuss the possible grounds on which you can apply for nullity of your civil partnership after gathering all the relevant factual information from you. Our annulment solicitors will explain to you the court procedures in very simple and clear terms and fully guide you through the procedures and carry out all the follow up work until the annulment order is issued by the family court.

How Much We Charge For Annulment Of Civil Partnership?

  • Our fixed fee for annulment of civil partnership ranges from £700 + VAT to £1,200 + VAT where the application for nullity is not contested by the Respondent (uncontested nullity of civil partnership);
  • If you instruct us on hourly rate, our expert team of annulment solicitors will charge on hourly rate basis with hourly rate from £150 + VAT to £250 + VAT per hour in relation to your annulment petition. The agreed hourly rate will be dependent on the complexity involved in your nullity petition.

How Much Is The Court Fee For Annulment Of Civil Partnership?

  • The court fee for filing annulment of civil partnership application in the family court is £550 which has to be paid at the time of filing for annulment. Petitioners with very low income may qualify for court fee exemption.

FAQs - Annulment Of Civil Partnership

What is a void civil partnership?

Void civil partnership means it was never legally valid. You can annul a civil partnership if it was not legally valid in the first place, for example:

  • you’re closely related to the person you registered civil partnership with
  • one or both of you were under 16
  • one of you was already married or in a civil partnership

If a civil partnership was never legally valid, the law says that it never existed. However, you may need legal paperwork (a ‘decree of nullity’) to prove this - for example if you want to get married again or register your civil partnership again.

What is a voidable civil partnership?

A voidablecivil partnership means a civil partnership which was legally valid, but meets one of the reasons that makes it ‘voidable’.

You can annul a voidable civil partnership for a number of reasons, such as:

  • you did not properly consent to the civil partnership - for example you were forced into it
  • the other person had a sexually transmitted disease (STD) when you registered civil partnership
  • one civil partner is in the process of transitioning to a different gender
How soon can I apply for annulment of my civil partnership?

You can apply for annulment of your civil partnership soon after your civil partnership. Unlike civil partneship dissolution, you do not have to wait for a year.

How can I apply for annulment of civil partnership?

You can apply for annulment of civil partnership by filling in a nullity petition. You should send 2 copies of the petition to your nearest family court and keep your own copy.

How much is the court fee for nullity petition?

Filing a nullity petition in family court in England & Wales costs £550.

Within how many days, the Respondent to the nullity petition is required to respond to the nullity petition?

The Respondent to the nullity petition must respond to your nullity petition within 8 days, saying whether they agree for the civil partnership to be be annulled.

When can I apply for decree nisi for annulment of my civil partnership?

Once the Respondent has responded to the nullity petition and has agreed to the civil partnership annulment, you can apply for a decree nisi. The decree nisi will confirm that the court does not see any reason why the civil partnership cannot be annulled.

When can I apply for decree of nullity to annul my civil partnership?

You can apply for a decree of nullity (decree absolute) 6 weeks after you get the decree nisi.  A ‘decree of nullity’ is the final legal document which says that the civil partnership has been annulled.

To apply for a decree of nullity, you need to fill in the notice of application for decree nisi to be made absolute.

Do I need to go to court for annulment of my civil partnership?

In most cases, you do not need to go to family court for annulment of civil partnership and the court will deal with the matters on papers.

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