In
English law, a co-respondent is, in general, a
respondent to a
petition
A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer called supplication.
In the colloquial sense, a petition is a document addressed to some offi ...
, or other legal proceeding, along with another or others, or a person called upon to answer in some other way.
[ 7.4.19]
Divorce
More particularly, since the
Matrimonial Causes Act 1857
The Matrimonial Causes Act 1857 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act reformed the law on divorce, moving litigation from the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts to the civil courts, establishing a model of marriage ...
, in a petition for
divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
on the ground of
adultery
Adultery (from Latin ''adulterium'') is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal ...
, a co-respondent is a person charged with misconduct with the petitioner's spouse.
, alleged parties to a spouse's adultery must be made co-respondents unless they are not named in the petition or the court directs otherwise.
[ Thursday, 22 April 2021 ]
In practice, naming such parties in a divorce petition is discouraged as it may become a barrier to reconciliation. Such parties are only commonly named if the petitioner is seeking
costs
In production, research, retail, and accounting, a cost is the value of money that has been used up to produce something or deliver a service, and hence is not available for use anymore. In business, the cost may be one of acquisition, in which ...
against them or has some other particular reason.
See also
*
Co-respondent shoe
The spectator shoe, also known as co-respondent shoe, is a style of low-heeled, Oxford shoe, oxford, Brogue shoe#Semi-brogues (or Half brogues), semi-brogue or Brogue shoe#Full brogues (or Wingtips), full brogue constructed from two contrasting col ...
References
Bibliography
*
* {{cite book
, author=The Law Society , author-link=The Law Society
, title=Family Law Protocol , year=2006 , edition=2nd rev. , publisher=The Law Society , location=London , isbn=1-85328-984-1
Family law
Divorce
English law
Civil procedure