Couples are increasingly living together, rather than marrying.
Many people believe that in doing so, they are “common law” man and wife. There is, however, no such thing legally as a common law man and wife. There is also there is no law equivalent to the divorce law upon which you can rely.
There is no such thing as common law man and wife.
The Government has openly said that it will be 2012 at the earliest before it considers making any new laws to protect couples who live together by giving them enhanced legal rights.
Some couples live together for many years before they separate, have children together, share the payment of household bills, contribute to pensions and buy assets such as cars, shares or savings policies. These relationships are very complex to sort out legally when couples split up.
There is no law equivalent to the divorce law which can be relied upon. But issues regarding how much you would be entitled to from property you own when separating, may involve court proceedings that could otherwise have been avoided.
A Cohabitation Agreement
This is a legal document which sets out what assets each of you have, what you each intend in terms of acquiring rights in property and how the bills are to be paid. We can prepare a cohabitation agreement for you if you have an arrangement with your partner about money and property.
Such an agreement is clear evidence of your intentions when you started out together and if court proceedings do need to be issued when you separate, a judge will attach a great deal of importance to the agreement.