Surely Rules Are Rules Aren't They?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/jan/24/gay-couple-sue-uk-same-sex-marriage-civil-partnership

/// When they went to book a registrar for their wedding, they were told they could not marry unless they first formally dissolved their civil partnership – in effect getting a divorce. ///

[DaisyNonna]

Upgrade?

[jno]

they had a civil partnership before, which was all they were allowed. Now they're allowed to marry, they want to. Except they have to get a "divorce" from each other in order to marry. Daft.

[Canary42]

Like much of the legislation introduced by the Coalition, this hasn't been thought through properly before being implemented.

[naomi24]

They can’t get ‘divorced’ – they were never married. Before they marry they need to end the contract they entered into – that’s all.

[THECORBYLOON]

As I understand it, there are no grounds to end the civil partnership.

[FredPuli43]

To end a civil partnership,if it has survived a year, one partner files a petition with the court, citing reasons for ending the partnership. If this is accepted, the petitioner then applies for a conditional order; in the instant example the other partner would consent to the dissolution; after a further 6 weeks the petitioner applies for a final order to end the partnership . This is analogous to the procedure for a normal divorce.

All in all, a lot of fuss and trouble which a bit of competence by the Secretary of State's department would avoid.

[naomi24]

https://www.gov.uk/end-civil-partnership

I stand corrected. Apparently ending a civil partnership, although it isn't a marriage, is considered to be 'divorce'. Potty.

[joggerjayne]

Civil Partnership and Marriage is like owning an iPhone.

You buy an iPhone 4

Then the iPhone 5 comes out, and you want an iPhone 5

You should just be happy with you iPhone 4, because there's not that much difference, and they both do the same thing.

[ladybirder]

I lifted the following from Stonewall's website:

When will the first marriages take place?

On 10 December the Government announced that:

- From 29 March 2014 same sex couples will be able to marry in England and Wales

- From June 2014 same sex couples will be able to be married in British Embassies, Consulates and High Commissions, as well as on British military bases

- By the end of 2014 couples in Civil Partnerships will be able to have them ‘converted’ to marriages

[sp1814]

JJ

Not true.

Married couples receive their partner's pensions when they die. With people in civil partnerships, any pension contributions made before the CP Act became law are transferred to the surviving partner.

Also, whatever way you look at it, CPs are a bit of a fudge. Massive props to the last Labour administration for bringing them in, but effectively, they're a contract which lacks the weight of social acceptance that marriage has.

Straight people can say, "I got married last June".

Gay people (presently) can only say , "I entered into a civil partnership agreement last June".

That statement has all the romance of taking out an extended guarantee for a washing machine.

All the social constructs which surround a CP ceremony look like those carried out during weddings, but they're fake. From the best man's speech, to the first dance, honeymoon etc etc...these are all things appropriated from traditional weddings to make CP look like weddings.

But they are not.

You could argue that CPs are so similar to weddings, that the Same Sex Marriage Act isn't needed.

I would argue that CPs promote 'otherness'...a bit like segregated toilets in the US in the last century.

[sp1814]

Oops..

I meant to write:

any pension contributions made before the CP Act became law are NOT transferred to the surviving partner.