Hi

I got married in pakistan in 1992, I had a religious ceremony, nikah. 
When my husband came to UK in June 1992 we did not have a civil
ceremony.  The house I live in my sole name & mortgage is also in my
sole name.  I have a son born in 1997.  We seperated approx 2 1/2 yrs
ago, he has not contributed since he left to any utilities, mortgage
etc & has never given any maintenance.  I would like to get divorced. 
I have searched the internet & believe my marriage may not be
recognised under british law although I have asked my
solicitor(English) who believes it is.  I would like everything
finalised & would appreciate if someone  can tell me which part of UK
law states my marriage is not recognised so I can show my solicitor &
speed things up.  Also any advice on a good solicitor who understands
these sort of matters.

It is very likely that your solicitor is correct.

If you and your husband had been married in the USA and subsequently
moved to Britain, would your marriage be recognized ?

I would strongly recommend having a look around W H Smith at the 'Made
Simple' books, an ex girlfriend of mine divorced her husband 25 years
ago using one of those, without a solicitor in sight.

Tactictally, it would probably not be wise to challenge the validity
of a Pakistani ceremony, it would create problems with/for your
parents, and also some people that you like. Blood is thicker than
water, and very old friends can be surprisingly open minded.

Also, and this may sound unencouraging, don't back your ex into a
corner, it is possible that his citizenship is not totally guaranteed,
so unless you wish to remarry, it might be sensible to let him get
settled.

I seriously doubt that your 'husband' has any property rights, but it
makes sense that he knows that if he messes around, physically or
legally, that he will get some pretty fast 'street justice'.
Play him like a cat with a mouse, but keep the mouse ... optimistic

If your marriage is not recognised in British law then you can't use
British law to get divorced. So proceed on the assumption that you
*are* married, and start divorce proceedings.

The following article on How to choose a solicitor has contact info
for the African Caribbean and Asian Lawyers Group and the Society of
Asian Lawyers.
http://money.guardian.co.uk/choosingandusing/story/0,14480,1195315,00.html

You can also use LawyerLocator to find a lawyer specialising in
Matrimonial matters in your area at
http://www.lawyerlocator.co.uk/

or using the Law Society website at
http://www.lawsociety.org.uk:80/choosingandusing/findasolicitor.law
choose specialising in Mediation-Family and you can select a language
as well if you wish. For example, there are 35 results for firms
dealing with Family Mediation in Hindi.

Owain