The working group ‘Pets on Divorce’ was thanked in the House of Lords during the Prenuptial Agreements Debate for its work on highlighting how pets are seen as chattels in Family law in England and Wales.
What is a Chattel?
A Chattel is a legal term for personal property or physical asset. This could be a piece of furniture or an appliance such as a blender. In family law across England and Wales, pets are also seen as chattels and not as an integral part of the family as they should be.
How was Pets On Divorce formed?
An animal lover herself, our Head of Family Law, Estella Newbold-Brown, has a keen interest in pet nups, and in late 2024, she joined forces with barrister Sarah Lucy Cooper from Thomas More Chambers to form the working group Pets on Divorce. The working group consists of 20+ lawyers and barristers plus vets and an animal behaviouralist and is focused on changing the law in England and Wales to ensure that pets are treated differently to other chattels.
Baroness Berridge
On Thursday, 27th February 2025, The Baroness Berridge spoke in the House of Lords, addressing the issue of pets being treated as chattels as part of the Prenuptial Agreements debate.
Baroness Berridge highlighted that in England and Wales, pets are seen merely as chattels or property (akin to a painting or even a refrigerator!) and asked the government to consider changing it. The Baroness highlighted the progressive changes in countries like Colombia, referenced DJ Hatvany’s recent blog, and the landmark judgment in FI v DO.
I thank the working group on ‘Pets on Divorce’, barrister Sarah Lucy Cooper and solicitor Estella Newbold-Brown for their work on this and for drawing this to my attention. This group also has the support of the previously mentioned High Court judge, Sir Nicholas Mostyn, and the Kennel Club. Will His Majesty’s Government agree to meet them to understand the solutions in this area of the law and how often it is an issue in proceedings? – Baroness Berridge
Watch Baroness Berridge’s speech in the House of Lords on ParliamentLive.TV
Sarah Lucy Cooper, a barrister at Thomas More Chambers and co-founder of the working group, said:
I am absolutely delighted that the Working Group on Pets on Divorce, which I have set up with Estella Newbold-Brown to try to change the law in relation to the treatment of pets on divorce, was mentioned today by Baroness Berridge in the House of Lords debate on Prenuptial Agreements…
Pets really should not be treated as just another chattel. The whole of the UK is sadly becoming an outlier as the examples we have collated from many other jurisdictions clearly show. Australia, Argentina, Colombia, Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, New Zealand, many states of the USA, and many states of Canada are just some of the jurisdictions where domesticated animals have a different status to other chattels on divorce.
Estella Newbold-Brown, Head of Family Law at Amphlett Lissimore and co-founder of Pets on Divorce, said:
A huge thank you to our dedicated working group members and the continued support from Sir Nicholas Mostyn, The Kennel Club, Karen Hauer from Strictly, and DJ Hatvany.
We remain committed to driving change and ensuring that pets are no longer treated as mere property in divorce proceedings.
Dr Ed Hayes, Head of Public Affairs at The Kennel Club, said:
For too long the law has treated our dogs as nothing more than a kettle or TV upon divorce, so we’re delighted to support the work of the ‘Pets on Divorce’ campaign to change this. Our dogs, and wider pets, are not objects, but a part of the family and it’s time for this to be fully reflected in legislation.
Samantha Baines, TV actress and host of the Divorce Social podcast said:
“We don’t deserve pets, and we need to protect them especially when it comes to divorce”
Retired High Court Judge, Nick Mostyn said:
As a retired High Court Family Division judge and the co-owner of a beloved miniature dachshund, I am well able to understand the additional stresses that disputes about pets can cause on divorce. Pets should not be treated by the Courts merely as another chattel, equivalent to the family car or a grandfather clock, as Baroness Berridge rightly argued in the House of Lords on 27 February 2025. Pet owners know that pet welfare demands a different approach. I commend this project to bring about a much needed change.
This is a huge step forward for the Pets on Divorce working group.