The Austin Lafferty Solicitors & Estate Agents Blog

The UK government had recently launched a consultation on how to lift the ban on same-sex couples marrying in a civil ceremony in England and Wales.

The consultation will seek views on how to change civil marriage only, not religious marriage, and makes the following key proposals:

• to open civil marriage ceremonies to same-sex couples;
• to make no changes to religious marriages – these will continue to remain only legally recognised if between a man and a woman;
• to retain civil partnerships for same-sex couples and allow couples already in a civil partnership to convert it into a marriage; and
• to allow people to stay married and legally change their gender.

The Scottish Government has recently carried out a similar consultation on same sex marriage and religious ceremonies for civil partnerships in Scotland. The consultation set out the Scottish Government's initial view, which is that same sex marriage should be introduced but that faith groups and their celebrants should not be obliged to solemnise same sex marriages. The consultation closed in December 2011.

The Registrar General has published preliminary births, deaths and other vital events figures for 2011.

The number of deaths in Scotland fell to 53,661 in 2011, the lowest number since records began in 1855. This was 306 (0.6%) fewer than in 2010, and 195 (0.4%) below the previous lowest number (which was 53,856 in 2009).

The number of births registered in 2011 was 58,592 – 199 (0.3%) fewer than in 2010. The figures also show that 51% of births were to unmarried parents, the highest percentage recorded. There were 29,135 marriages in 2011 – 655 (2.3%) more than in 2010 and the highest figure since 2007.

Commenting on the provisional totals of vital events registered during 2011, Registrar General for Scotland George MacKenzie said:

“The preliminary number of divorces reported to us has again fallen slightly, this time to 9,814, though the final figure may be a little higher once we get all the late returns. The decline is not unexpected. We have seen a drop in the number of divorces each year since a peak in 2006 when the Family Law (Scotland) Act reduced separation periods.

“There were increases in the numbers of stillbirths, infant deaths, adoptions, marriages, civil partnerships formed and civil partnerships dissolved.”

The Scottish Government has recently announced changes to the law that will enable more people to stay in their homes if their husband, wife or civil partner has died without making a will. These changes follow a consultation on these areas of succession law that took place earlier this year.

Currently, if a home-owner dies without making a will, their spouse or civil partner might have to sell the family home if it was worth more than £300,000. The changes announced by the Government mean that, with effect from 1st February 2012, this house value limit will be increased to £473,000.

The Scottish Government has also announced that the financial limits where a sheriff clerk can prepare an inventory and declaration to finalise an estate without the need for a solicitor will be increased to £36,000.

Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs, Roseanna Cunningham, said:

"These small but much needed changes will offer protection for those who have lost a loved one and are left to deal with the consequences when no will has been made.

"The increase in limits to £473,000 means that most people in Scotland will be able to stay in the family home they shared with their spouse or civil partner, sparing them the distress and disruption of leaving their homes at such a difficult time.

"These are additional safeguards when an individual has not left a will. It is a reminder to us all just how important a document a will can be.”

Both of these changes are due to be made by negative resolution of a statutory instrument in the Scottish Parliament and are due to come into force on 1st February 2012. They were both last increased in 2005.

The Registrar General for Scotland has published provisional figures for births, deaths, marriages and civil partnerships registered during the third quarter of 2011.

The figures show:

- 15,216 births were registered in the third quarter of the year - 306 (2.1%) more than in the same period of 2010.

- At 11,651, the number of marriages was 74 more than in the third quarter of 2010.

- 194 civil partnerships (74 male and 120 female) were registered in the quarter, 23 more than in the third quarter of 2010.

- 12,615 deaths were registered in Scotland in the third quarter of 2011 - 0.9% more than in the same period of 2010.

- Deaths from cancer rose by 0.3%. Deaths from coronary heart disease and stroke fell by 5.8% and 0.9 % respectively.

Glasgow City Council has agreed a motion backing the recent Scottish Government proposals on allowing same-sex marriage.

Councillor Dingwall said:

“I’m immensely happy that today Glasgow has continued our city’s proud record of opposing discrimination in all its forms and unanimously supporting the campaign for marriage equality.

“In doing so we have rejected those who want to tell our LGBT community in Glasgow that they are not equal, that they are wrong, that they are evil. We are happy to join with the Unitarians, Quakers, Metropolitan Church, Liberal Judaism and others who want to provide equal marriage.”

The motion agreed by the Council takes into account recent survey data showing that 58% of people support equal marriage rights for same-sex couples. The motion states:

“1. The Scottish Government should recognise this shift in public attitudes within its current consultation on equal marriage;

2. That the Scottish Government consultation should include the issue of mixed sex couples being allowed to enter into civil partnerships; and

3. That establishing equal marriage and mixed sex civil partnerships would in no way undermine the rights and freedoms of those religious bodies which do not wish to participate in them.”

The Council will now prepare a formal response to the Government's consultation exercise reflecting these points.

Scotland's Chief Statistician has published statistics on the civil business of the Court of Session and sheriff courts in Scotland in 2010-11.

The statistics relating to family cases in 2010-11 show that:

• - Divorce or the dissolution of a civil partnership accounted for 84% of the 149 family cases initiated in 2010-11 in the General Department of the Court of Session. Of the 134 divorce and dissolution cases disposed, 85% were undefended.
• - The majority of family cases in the sheriff courts were for divorce or the dissolution of a civil partnership, with 76% of cases initiated in 2010-11 being of this type.
• - Over three-quarters of the remaining family cases initiated in 2010-11 in the sheriff court related to parental responsibilities and rights. Of these, 44% related to contact, 28% to residence and 28% to other parental responsibilities and rights.
• - Applications for a warrant to keep a child in a place of safety continued to increase in 2010-11, up from 1,462 in 2009-10 to 1,550 in 2010-11. Nearly all of the applications recorded as being disposed were granted.