Succession Rights for Separating Couples

There are important protections in Irish law for widows and widowers that have been left out of, or not properly provided for in the will of their deceased spouse. Under the Succession Act 1965, a spouse is entitled to half  of the estate if there are no children. Alternatively, they will be entitled to one
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Grandparents and Guardianship – The Legal Rights of Grandparents

When a family unit breaks down the focus is inevitably in establishing each parents’ rights in relation to their children. What is often forgotten is that such a break up can have negative consequences for the grandparents who may wish to apply for guardianship, access or custody.  We all understand that grandparents play a very important role
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Irish Divorce Rates Back at Pre-Recession Levels

The pre-recession levels of divorce are back in Ireland after several years of declining numbers, according to the Law Society. The announcement by the governing body of solicitors in Ireland, suggests that the trend is down to the fact that people, who had wanted to get divorced for years, were unable to financially support themselves
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Love at first sight or a Pre-Nuptial Agreement

A recent poll by FarmIreland.ie showed that over 70 per cent of farmers believe that prenuptial agreements should have legal standing in Ireland. Unlike the US Canada, New Zealand and Australia, Ireland currently has no legislation which expressly recognises such agreements and makes them enforceable. However, ‘prenups’ as they are often called, can still be
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Maintenance: Do Rights Come With Duties?

Maintenance : Do Rights Come with Duties This is a sensitive family law area, which can be complex when parents and/or spouses are faced with relationship breakdown and are not aware of their rights or their duties. Who pays maintenance? There is a legal responsibility in Ireland on both spouses, to maintain each other, and on parents,
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Marriage Breakdown -When Your Marriage Does Not Last For As Long As You Both Shall Live

Marriage Breakdown – the Options If you are faced with marriage breakdown, and the uncertainty that comes with it, it is important for you to know what options are available to you. Counselling and mediation to explore possible reconciliation or an amicable as possible separation should always be explored first. This is something your solicitor
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Children & Family Relationship Bill 2014

On Tipp FM, Andrea Gleasure, Solicitor, spoke to Seamus Martin on ‘Tipp Today’ about the Children & Family Relationship Bill 2014.   How Modern is our Modern Family?  The Children and Family Relationships Bill 2014.The Children and Family Relationships Bill 2014 looks to clarify the law concerning children  within all families.The Bill’s  stated aim is
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Modern Family & Cohabitation – Implications of being a cohabitant

Read our previous blog on what makes somebody a ‘qualifying cohabitant’ More than a ‘common law spouse’ The term “common law marriage” is a phrase that is familiar to many people. It does not, however, represent any legal rights in Ireland. Many couples have in the past, assumed in error that certain rights and responsibilities
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Modern Family & Cohabitation – What is a ‘cohabitant’ and do I qualify as one?

The Changing Nature of the Irish Family Earlier this decade, the law in Ireland finally began to catch up to an increasingly diverse Irish society and put in place some protections for unmarried partners to mirror those available for married partners. The last census showed that there were nearly 90,000 couples in Ireland describing themselves
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Who Keeps the Dog? Deciding the division of assets after divorce.

Who gets what? When going through a divorce, rational discussion about division of assets can be  extremely difficult. If the divorcing couple cannot decide between themselves how best to split their assets, their solicitors can guide them through a mediation process. Of course, if that ultimately is not helpful, the courts are there to step
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