Many people believe that common law marriage exists in England. However, this is a myth and while lawmakers are keen to modernise the law, at present cohabiting or unmarried couples have few legal rights.
Problems can often arise where a cohabiting couple break-up, or when one dies. When couples are unmarried or not in a civil partnership, their partner has no rights under intestacy laws to inherit from their estate, and do not benefit from Inheritance Tax exemption that spouses or civil partners do.
Legal rights of unmarried couples
If a cohabiting couple breaks-up, then, apart from limited provisions in relation to children, the law does not currently provide any straightforward remedy to enable the financially weaker person in the relationship to make any financial claims against the other.
It may be possible to claim an interest in a property owned by the other person but normally only if it can be shown that some financial contribution has been made towards the purchase of the property.
The financial consequence of breakdown of a long term relationship for some can be devastating. It is not uncommon for a couple to live together for many years in a house owned by only one of them. A woman may put her career on hold to look after the children of the relationship and, as a result, her income and pension may be much less than it would otherwise have been.
She may find at the end of a long relationship that she has no claim against the family home if it is owned by her partner, nor could she claim maintenance for herself or any share of her partner’s pension, no matter how wealthy her partner may be. She could find that she leaves the relationship with very little to show for her commitment to the family. It could all have been so different if only she had married or in a civil partnership, or entered into a Living Together Agreement with her partner.
Living Together Agreements / Cohabitation Agreements
To avoid problems such as those stated above, a contract known as a Living Together Agreement (also known as a Cohabitation Agreement) can be created to protect couples that live together. This agrees ‘who owns what’ and can be really helpful protecting yourself in the case of a break-up or death of your partner.
The agreement will state who the contract is between and how the significant assets, such as property, bank accounts, valuables, etc., should be dealt with, should the relationship end.
Living Together Agreements are legally binding, so long as they are drafted as a formal legal Deed. You must also ensure that each party takes independent legal advice and that you are both honest with the other about your finances before the agreement is prepared.
As there are issues such as Tax planning to consider, it is usually advisable to consider your Wills at the same time as a Living Together Agreement.
How can Nelsons help?
If you need any advice in relation to legal rights for unmarried couples, Living Together Agreements or any related subjects, please contact a member of the team in Derby, Leicester or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online form.
Our Family Law Solicitors will be happy to discuss your circumstances in more detail and give you more information about the services that we can provide along with details of our hourly rates and fixed fee services.