Harriet Collins

Associate Evie Smyth explores property ownership disputes through the lens of the Al Jaber family home dispute, placing the case within a wider examination of the difficulties individuals face in establishing property rights and the limitations of cohabitation law.

Civil partnerships have also surged (up 73% since 2022) showing couples are exploring alternative ways to formalise their relationships. In this briefing, partner Jemma Pollock and senior associate Harriet Collins consider what the data shows and how the law is lagging behind. A changing picture Whilst marriage and civil partnerships do continue to remain the most common legal partnership status, the ONS estimates there are now 6.5 million people living in a cohabitating relationship.

Briefings The recent decision in Helliwell v Entwistle provides us with guidance from the Court of Appeal which is a rarity as it is one of only a few contested financial remedy cases that have been tested at court since the landmark Judgment of the Supreme Court in Radmacher v Granatino back in 2010. It is also a rarity in recent years for the terms of a prenuptial agreement not to be upheld. The courts have been moving towards upholding prenuptial agreements in more cases than not.