John Hooper & Co

Solicitors

Newsletter 30 – The Perils of Cohabitation?

Recent Government statistics confirm that approximately half of all cohabiting heterosexual couples are unmarried.

One could therefore be forgiven for drawing the conclusion that there are real benefits to be derived from cohabitation

However, from a legal perspective, that is certainly not the case in the event that that relationship breaks down.

This is because:-

1.There is no power for one party to claim maintenance from the other.
2.There is no power for one party to claim a sum of money or property from the other.
3.There is no power to make a claim against the other’s pension.
4.Neither party has any immediate inheritance rights against the other, i.e. if one partner dies without making a Will, the other will not inherit the deceased partner’s estate.
5.Where the property is held in the sole name of one party – the other party has no rights to a share of the property (unless there is a clear agreement to the contrary or clear evidence of a financial contribution towards the purchase of that property by the other party.
6.There is no right to occupy property which is solely owned by the other party after the breakdown of the relationship (unless there are children of that relationship).
7.There is only a very limited mechanism to resolve disputes between the parties about the contents of the home.
8.The power to sell the jointly owned home is unwieldy and expensive especially in the face of opposition of the other party.

Many leading family law figures (including the President of the Family Division) have strongly recommended the introduction of laws to regulate the financial consequences of the breakdown of a cohabitation relationship. However, so far, neither the previous Government nor the present Government have shown any enthusiasm at all to take up this baton.

In the meantime, cohabiting couples would be well advised to enter into a Cohabitation Agreement. This is a form of contract which regulates what happens to their property in the event of the breakdown of that relationship.

The preparation of mutual Wills would also help to prevent serious problems in the event of the death of either one of the parties.

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