Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008

Family Law Reform Act 1987 (c. 42)

24 (1) Section 1 of the Family Law Reform Act 1987 (general principle) is amended as follows.

(2) In subsection (3) (children whose father and mother are to be taken to have been married to each other at the time of the child’s birth) after paragraph (b) insert—

“(ba) has a parent by virtue of section 42 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 (which relates to treatment provided to a woman who is at the time of treatment a party to a civil partnership or, in certain circumstances, a void civil partnership);

(bb) has a parent by virtue of section 43 of that Act (which relates to treatment provided to woman who agrees that second woman to be parent) who—

(i) is the civil partner of the child’s mother at the time of the child’s birth, or

(ii) was the civil partner of the child’s mother at any time during the period beginning with the time mentioned in section 43(b) of that Act and ending with the child’s birth;”.

(3) After subsection (4) insert—

“(5) A child whose parents are parties to a void civil partnership shall, subject to subsection (6), be treated as falling within subsection (3)(bb) if at the time when the parties registered as civil partners of each other both or either of the parties reasonably believed that the civil partnership was valid.

(6) Subsection (5) applies only where the woman who is a parent by virtue of section 43 was domiciled in England and Wales at the time of the birth or, if she died before the birth, was so domiciled immediately before her death.

(7) Subsection (5) applies even though the belief that the civil partnership was valid was due to a mistake as to law.

(8) It shall be presumed for the purposes of subsection (5), unless the contrary is shown, that one of the parties to a void civil partnership reasonably believed at the time of the formation of the civil partnership that the civil partnership was valid.”