THE Civil Partnership Bill will, for the first time, give legal recognition to same-sex couples in Ireland.It will recognise same-sex civil partnerships.
Couples who register their relationship with a civil registrar will have many of the same entitlements and will be subject to many of the same legally enforceable obligations as parties to a civil marriage.
These include protections and obligations across areas, such as:
* Protection of the couple's shared home.
* Domestic violence.
* Residential tenancies.
* Succession.
* Pensions.
* Taxation.
* Social welfare.
* Immigration.
The bill also provides rights for cohabiting couples, both same-sex and heterosexual, who are neither married nor in a civil partnership.
SIC: II