TNAG-2156-FCO40-3076-International-Covenant-on-Civil-and-Political-Rights-(ICCPR)-1990 — Page 65

Exemption from jury service for family commitments

290. Under section 9 (2) of the Juries Act 1974, a person who can show to the satisfaction of the summoning officer that there is good reason may be excused jury service by that officer. There is a right of appeal to the court against

an officer's refusal to excuse. Under section 9A of the 1974 Act, there is also a power for the summoning officer to defer jury service.

Cohabitation

In

291. Although in certain limited statutory areas persons living together as husband and wife are treated the same whether married or not, cohabitation in general carries with it none of the rights or obligations of marriage. particular, there is no duty of mutual support and, on the breakdown of the relationship, there are no special provisions for maintenance of one cohabitant by another, or for adjusting their rights in property. Such matters are therefore governed by the general law.

292. It is argued that treating cohabitants as if they were married may have major disadvantages. The two commonly cited are that it would (a) undermine marriage, and (b) limit choice, i.e. people may not marry because they do not wish to incur the rights and obligations which marriage entails.

293. Arguably, in a society where there is a general freedom to marry and where, in the absence of marriage, parties may reach enforceable agreements about financial and property arrangements both during the period of cohabitation and after it breaks down, imposing the rules ancillary to marriage on those who are not married would be an unnecessary and undesirable restriction in individual freedom. That is not to say, however, that there may not be particular problems relating to cohabitation which the law may need to address individually.

294. The Law Reform (Husband and Wife) (Scotland) Act 1984 abolished a number of obsolete and discriminatory legal actions and rules in Scottish law. The Family Law (Scotland) Act 1985 made fresh provision in the law of Scotland regarding aliment and financial provision on divorce, in particular requiring that financial provision for a spouse on divorce should involve fair sharing of property, fair account of economic advantage or disadvantage derived by either spouse in the marriage, recognition of the burden of child care, adjustment to independence and prevention of serious financial hardship.

Article 24

Children Bill

295. In 1984, following the recommendation of the Social Services Committee of the House of Commons, a wide-ranging review of public child care law in England and Wales was carried out and in 1985 a report, "Review of child care law", was published. A period of extensive consultation followed and in 1987 the Government published its proposals for reform in a White Paper, "The law on child care and family services". Simultaneously, a review of the private law relating to children was carried out by the Law Commission in England and Wales, which published proposals in a report on guardianship and custody in June 1988.