Matt Lucas, star of the controversial comedy show Little Britain, wants to dissolve his homosexual civil partnership after only 18 months.
It is the first dissolution involving a wealthy celebrity – Mr Lucas is reported to have a £15 million fortune.
It could be a test case for whether civil partnership dissolutions will be treated exactly like divorces of married couples.
The rules are very similar to divorce with parties entitled to seek financial support from each other.
If civil partnerships are treated exactly the same as marriages Mr Lucas could be forced to make a heavy pay out to his civil partner, Kevin McGee.
Mr Lucas has employed the law firm Mishcon de Reya, the same firm used by Heather Mills in her divorce from Paul McCartney and by Princess Diana in her divorce from Prince Charles.
Alan Kaufman, head of family law at Finers Stephens Innocent, told The Daily Telegraph: “At the moment we simply don’t know whether a judge will look at a civil partnership in exactly the same way as a husband and wife in a heterosexual relationship. It will be fascinating to see how the courts deal with it.”