First "Palimony" Case

The first award under the Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006 which gave new rights for cohabitants to seek financial provision in the event of a relationship breakdown was made recently by the Court of Session on 2 September.

According to The Scotsman a woman claimed £70k to cover the economic disadvantage she had suffered through the relationship by staying at home to care for children.

Lord Matthews, the judge, said the mother's loss had to be balanced against the contributions the father had made during their time together. He awarded week £1,460.31 which represented a half share of a tax bill and a half share of the estimated £26,000 to cover childcare until the children are 16 to be paid by installments of £400 a month.

The full judgment can be found on the Scottish Courts website.

Amended 27/1/09: The figure originally quoted for the half share of the tax bill, £14,460.31, was an error in fact the total amount .