Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010

(3) Subject to subsection (4), a cohabitants’ agreement may provide that neither cohabitant may apply for an order for redress referred to in section 173, or an order for provision from the estate of his or her cohabitant under section 194.

(4) The court may vary or set aside a cohabitants’ agreement in exceptional circumstances, where its enforceability would cause serious injustice.

(5) An agreement that meets the other criteria of this section shall be deemed to be a cohabitants’ agreement under this section even if entered into before the cohabitation has commenced.

203. Amendment of section 39 of Residential Tenancies Act 2004.

203.— Section 39(3)(a)(ii) of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 is amended by substituting “was the tenant’s cohabitant within the meaning of section 172 of the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010 and lived with the tenant” for “cohabited with the tenant as husband and wife”.

204. Amendment of section 47 of Civil Liability Act 1961.

204.— The definition of “dependant” in section 47(1) (as substituted by section 1 of the Civil Liability (Amendment) Act 1996) of the Civil Liability Act 1961 is amended by substituting the following for paragraph (c):

“(c) a person who was not married to or a civil partner of the deceased but who, until the date of the deceased’s death, had been living with the deceased as the deceased’s cohabitant within the meaning of section 172 of the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010 for a continuous period of not less than three years,”.

205. Amendment of Powers of Attorney Act 1996.

205.— Paragraph 3(1) of the First Schedule of the Powers of Attorney Act 1996 is amended—

(a) in subparagraph (h) by substituting “blood;” for “blood.”, and

(b) by inserting the following:

“(i) the donor’s qualified cohabitant, within the meaning of section 172 of the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010.”.

206. Transitional provision - redress orders.

206.— An order for redress referred to in section 173 shall only be made if the application for it is made with respect to a relationship that ends, whether by death or otherwise, after the commencement of this section but the time during which two persons lived as a couple before the commencement date is included for the purposes of calculating whether they are qualified cohabitants within the meaning of this Part.

207. Transitional provision - agreements.

207.— Nothing in section 202(2) prevents a court from enforcing an agreement entered into between two persons before the commencement of this Part.

PART 16 Miscellaneous

208. Saver in relation to rights of others.

208.— In making an order under this Act and in particular in making a maintenance order, lump sum order, property adjustment order, pension adjustment order or order for provision from the estate of a deceased person, the court shall have regard to the rights of any other person with an interest in the matter, including a spouse or former spouse and a civil partner or former civil partner.