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Views sought on divorce reform, civil partnerships and the age of marriage

18 January 2019

Wedding rings image

​Islanders are invited to give their views on divorce reform, the future of civil partnerships, and the age of marriage at a series of public meetings to be held next week.

The three public meetings will be held at St Paul’s Centre and will take place on

  • Tuesday 22 January from 6.30pm to 7.30pm
  • Wednesday 23 January from 12pm to 1pm
  • Thursday 24 January from 6.30pm to 7.30pm.

Anyone who would like to attend is asked to email Ben Sandeman, b.sandeman3@gov.je, in advance.

The meetings form part of a twelve-week consultation which is running until Friday 22 February. The consultation is seeking islanders’ views on the following topics:

Divorce reform

In September 2015, the States Assembly agreed in principle to replace the island’s existing 70-year-old divorce law. Islanders are asked for their views on

  • removing the three year bar on divorce - at the moment spouses have to be married for three years before filing for divorce
  • moving to 'no fault divorce' - where couples can get divorced without having to prove that their spouse was a fault
  • introducing joint filing - currently one spouse must divorce the other, even when they both agree their marriage has ended
  • removing the ability to contest a divorce.

Future of civil partnerships

In June 2018, the UK Supreme Court ruled that it is discriminatory to only allow same-sex couples to enter into a civil partnership. Islanders are being asked whether

  • civil partnerships should be extended to opposite sex couples , in addition to same sex couples; or
  • civil partnerships should be closed to new couples.

Age of marriage

The United Nations Committee on the Convention of the Rights of the Child has recommended that Jersey prohibits marriage between 16 and 17 year olds. Islanders are asked whether they think that the minimum age of marriage should be increased to 18.

​
All islanders are encouraged to have their say on these issues by attending one of the public meetings, by answering the online questionnaire, or by responding to the consultation document by email or post. 

Further information about the consultation and how to respond is available on the consultation webpage.

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