SCHEDULES

SCHEDULE 9Family homes and domestic violence

Part 1Amendments of the Family Law Act 1996 (c. 27)

1

(1)

Amend section 30 (rights concerning matrimonial home where one spouse has no estate, etc.) as follows.

(2)

In subsection (1)—

(a)

in paragraph (a)—

(i)

after “one spouse” insert “ or civil partner (“A”) ”, and

(ii)

for “that spouse” substitute “ A ”.

(b)

in paragraph (b), after “other spouse” insert “ or civil partner (“B”) ”.

(3)

In subsection (2)—

(a)

for “the spouse not so entitled” substitute “ B ”,

(b)

for “(“matrimonial home rights”)” substitute “ (“home rights”) ”, and

(c)

in paragraph (a), for “the other spouse” substitute “ A ”.

(4)

In subsection (3)—

(a)

for “a spouse” and for “that spouse” substitute “ B ”, and

(b)

for “the other spouse” (in both places) substitute “ A ”.

(5)

In subsection (4)—

(a)

for “A spouse's” substitute “ B's ”,

(b)

in paragraph (a), for “by the other spouse as the other spouse's” substitute “ by A as A's ”, and

(c)

in paragraph (b)—

(i)

for “the spouse occupies the dwelling-house as that spouse's” substitute “ B occupies the dwelling-house as B's ”, and

(ii)

for “by the other spouse as the other spouse's” substitute “ by A as A's ”.

(6)

In subsection (5)—

(a)

for “a spouse (“the first spouse”)” substitute “ B ”, and

(b)

in paragraph (b), for “the other spouse (“the second spouse”)” substitute “ A ”,

(c)

for “the second spouse” substitute “ A ”, and

(d)

for “the first spouse against the second spouse” substitute “ B against A ”.

(7)

In subsection (6)—

(a)

for “a spouse” substitute “ B ”, and

(b)

for “the other spouse” (in both places) substitute “ A ”.

(8)

In subsection (7), for the words from first “which” to the end substitute“which—

(a)

in the case of spouses, has at no time been, and was at no time intended by them to be, a matrimonial home of theirs; and

(b)

in the case of civil partners, has at no time been, and was at no time intended by them to be, a civil partnership home of theirs.”

(9)

In subsection (8)—

(a)

for “A spouse’s matrimonial home rights” substitute “ B’s home rights ”,

(b)

in paragraph (a), after “marriage” insert “ or civil partnership ”, and

(c)

in paragraph (b), for “the other spouse” substitute “ A ”.

(10)

In subsection (9)—

(a)

for “a spouse” (in both places) substitute “ a person ”, and

(b)

for “matrimonial home rights” substitute “ home rights ”.

(11)

In the heading to section 30, for “matrimonial home where one spouse” substitute “ home where one spouse or civil partner ” and, in the preceding cross-heading, after “matrimonial” insert “ or civil partnership ”.