New laws relating to pre-nuptial agreements could encourage couples to marry because they would be assured that in the event of a divorce they would retain their property. This opinion was expressed by the Law Commission and reported by the London Evening Standard.

Lawyers are reporting a surge in the number of people seeking pre-nups. The Evening Standard disclosed last week that ministers now believe legislation is needed. Today the commission - the Government's advisory body on legal reform - launched a consultation on the changes.

The most likely option is for people to be able to strike deals allowing them to keep, in the event of a divorce, property or other assets they owned prior to marriage. Agreements could also allow a person to retain assets they inherit after marrying.

Any deal which fails to take account of the needs of children, or leaves one spouse reliant on benefits, would not be acceptable. Professor Elizabeth Cooke, the Law Commissioner, said bringing in pre-nups needed to be "handled with care" - but they could encourage some people, deterred by the risk to their property, to marry.

"We have heard anecdotal evidence that there are people who are put off at the moment," she added.

Marian Lynch, matrimonial partner at City law firm Pitmans, said "two or three people a week" were now inquiring about pre-nups. "I think it will encourage marriage because people feel a lot safer and a lot happier," she added. Those seeking a deal included people entering second marriages, and parents who had given large sums to their children for purposes such as house deposits.

Detailed proposals will follow the consultation. It comes after the Sup-reme Court ruling in the case of German heiress Katrin Radmacher. The court decided a pre-nup with ex-husband Nicolas Granatino should be honoured. His divorce settlement was cut from £5 million to £1 million.

See the original article.
Apply for family law jobs.

Family law deals with all issues that are family or domestically related. This could include all issues surrounding marriage, civil partnerships and domestic relations such as divorce, annulment, property and financial settlements as well as issues regarding children such as legitimacy, custody & visitation, adoption and child abuse. This list however is not exhaustive and there are also aspects of family law that can also be associated with criminal law and vice versa. Those with family law jobs could be expected to work with clients who are going through divorce or separation proceedings as well as those who are going through the process of becoming married. Due to the complex and varied nature of family law it is not possible to outline a completely typical day for someone working within the area of family law. Family law courts are one of the most crowded in the entire legal profession and lawyers can be expected to:

• Represent clients in court in various cases concerning family law.
• Advising clients in potential settlements and negotiations
• Drafting and examining legal documents
• Advising solicitors and other legal practitioners in legal cases.

Those looking for family law jobs will require a relevant law degree, usually to a 2:1 standard and some may require additional post graduate qualifications in the field of their choice. It can take year to become a top family lawyer but people with family law jobs can easily earn £60k pa and more.

Current Advertisers

Looking to advertise? If you would like to receive information about opening an account with simplylawjobs.com to advertise an unlimited amount of courses on your own dedicated page please contact us via the details below. eMail: info@simplylawjobs.com Tel: 01772 639033