The Budget announced that same-sex couples registering from December 2005 under the Civil Partnerships Act 2004 will be treated as married couples for tax purposes (and a good thing too).

The point for property lawyers will be whether they have a duty to advise unrelated same-sex couples who are not in a sexual or romantic relationship, and are buying a property together, to register civil partnerships.


This may be the case with older same-sex couples who live together for companionship and financial reasons, and are likely to want to leave their assets to the other on death.


Susan Singleton, Singletons, Pinner, Middlesex