Download COHABITATION RIGHTS Over 8 million people chose to live

COHABITATION RIGHTS
Over 8 million people chose to live together without getting married or cohabit before their marriage or civil
partnership. We support you when you are entering into a new relationship by helping you with cohabitation
and other types of family law agreements and if the relationship ends with sorting out any childcare
arrangements and money matters.
‘Common law marriage’...the myth
Most people believe they and their partner have legal rights if they have lived together for a number of years.
This is incorrect as there is no such thing as a common law husband or wife.
An unmarried couple can live together for a month and even though the family home may be owned in one
person’s name the other partner may acquire legal rights over the family home. Another unmarried couple
may live together for 30 years and if a family home is owned in one partner’s name the other partner may
have no legal rights against the other or financial claims.
The family home and property ownership
If the ‘family home’ or other property is owned in joint names then you should have been advised to prepare
a declaration of trust document or cohabitation agreement to record how much you and your partner will
receive from the sale proceeds. If you have prepared this type of document then the terms of the document
is likely to be binding unless you have dependant children.
If the family home or other property is owned jointly and there is no written agreement about how the equity
will be shared if you split up the court will assume that you are both entitled to receive 50% of the equity –
but you can not rely on this as this presumption can be overturned if there is evidence that you had a
different common intention – even though that intention was not written down.
If the family home or other property is owned in one name, the non owning partner may be able to establish
a claim against it, if they can show they have made a direct financial contribution to the purchase of the
home or some other significant payment towards the property such as helping with the mortgage or indirect
contribution such as carrying out renovations to the property or relying on promises that they would get an
interest in the property and acting to ‘’their detriment’’ as a result of the promise.
Property disputes between couples are legally complex and are determined by land and Trusts law. Although
the court rules and procedures are different to a married couple it is vital that you get specialist family law
advice to make sure that you are protected.
House sales
The court has the power to order the sale of a family home or other property even if the house is owned in
one partner’s name. If necessary the court can decide on how much the family home or other property is sold
for and if you or your partner refuse to sell the property after an order has been made the court has the
power to sign the transfer paper work on yours or your partner’s behalf.
If there are dependant children, then depending on family circumstances it may be possible to ask for
money, on trust, to help re-house the children. These types of trust claim are specialised and complex but we
have many years experience in advising on these claims.
Children
The law in relation to children and contact arrangements is the same regardless of whether you are married
or unmarried but fathers will need advice on if they have parental responsibility (PR) for their children. A
variety of other court orders can be made such as residence or school fees orders.
It is better for you and your children if you can agree future arrangements about their upbringing. We can
help support you through Mediation or Collaborative law to agree the agreements. If you can’t agree we can
make applications to court for you.
Did you know?
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Unmarried partners cannot make claims for spousal maintenance for themselves however long they
have been in a relationship with their partner
Unmarried couples can make claims for child support if there are dependent children. Exactly the same
rules apply to unmarried partners as to married couples. Even if the care of a child is shared equally
between parents child support will still be payable
Unmarried partners cannot make claims against their partner’s pension
Unmarried partners can make property claims against property
A property claim by an unmarried partner is more legally complex than a claim by a married partner –
the court takes very different factors into account when deciding what orders to make
If you buy a property together with a partner you should enter into a cohabitation agreement or
declaration of trust
If, for personal or financial reasons, you or your partner buy a property in your sole name but live with
your partner you should still enter into a cohabitation agreement
If extended family lend you money to help buy a property it is important that agreement is reached as to
whether or not the money is a gift or a loan and, if the money is a gift, whether it is to you as a couple or
to one of you – written agreements need to be put in place
If you are a same-sex couple and have not entered into a civil partnership then it is just as important that
you enter into a cohabitation agreement or declaration of trust to protect your financial interests
If you are unmarried and die your partner could make a claim against your estate – there are no
guarantees about how much he or she would get from your estate. If you do or don’t want your partner to
inherit any money you should make a Will to protect your family
If you are unmarried and become unwell then if you do not have a Lasting Power of Attorney in place
appointing your partner to manage your personal or financial affairs your partner will have no legal rights
to help you. If you do want your partner to be able to help you in those circumstances you should make a
Lasting Power of Attorney to protect you and your family.
For advice on any family law issue please contact:
Helen Marriott
Partner, Head of Family Law
0151 600 3050
[email protected]
Paula Milburn
Partner, Family team
0161 836 8914
[email protected]
This leaflet is for general guidance purposes only and should not be used for any other purpose.
Brabners Chaffe Street is a Limited Liability Partnership.