In
English law
English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures.
Principal elements of English law
Although the common law has, historically, b ...
, restitution of conjugal rights was an action in the
ecclesiastical court
An ecclesiastical court, also called court Christian or court spiritual, is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages, these courts had much wider powers in many areas of Europe than be ...
s and later in the
Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes. It was one of the actions relating to
marriage
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
, over which the ecclesiastical courts formerly had jurisdiction.
This could be brought against a
husband
A husband is a male in a marital relationship, who may also be referred to as a spouse. The rights and obligations of a husband regarding his spouse and others, and his status in the community and in law, vary between societies and cultures ...
or
wife
A wife (plural, : wives) is a female in a marital relationship. A woman who has separated from her partner continues to be a wife until the marriage is legally Dissolution (law), dissolved with a divorce judgement. On the death of her partner, ...
who was guilty of "subtraction"; that is, living away from their spouse without a good reason. If the suit was successful, the married couple would be required to live together again.
In 1969 a
Law Commission report recommended the abolition of the action, and it was abolished by the
Matrimonial Proceedings and Property Act 1970.
History
United Kingdom
English Law
=Prior to 1813
=
Under the jurisdiction of the Ecclesiastical Courts, which controlled marriage regulations, desertion was not defined as a matrimonial offense, instead a deserted spouse could ask for
a ''decree of restitution of conjugal rights''. After such a decree was obtained, the other spouse had to return home and continue marital cohabitation - failure to do so was punished with
excommunication
Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...
.
=The Ecclesiastical Courts Act 1813
=
The