Cohabitation Disputes and Living Together Agreements
Probably the most unsupported area of Family Law is that relating to cohabitants.
The proportion of people aged 16 years and over living in a couple, who were cohabiting (not in a marriage or a civil partnership) increased from 19.7% in 2012 to 22.7% in 2022, equivalent to 5.4 million people in 2012 and 6.8 million people in 2022 (ref: https://www.ons.gov.uk).
It is staggering that for these people there is, in England and Wales, no specific law relating to cohabitants, no automatic right to maintenance nor to property adjustment orders. As a result these parties have to resort to other areas of the law; the Law of Property Act, the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act and Equitable remedies to resolve their claims.
This is a complex area of law and the costs consequences of getting it wrong can be far reaching. A review of the law relating to cohabitant’s claims is long overdue and the area has been subject to many Law Commission reviews and recommendations that have never come to fruition. These cases are always fact specific and depend to a large extent upon what the parties intended at the point of living together. Unfortunately it is to the detriment and cost of many clients who find out when it is too late, that they have no protection.
Having a Living Together Agreement drafted in advance of living together goes some way towards providing a remedy. Speak to us about a Living Together Agreement to avoid these pitfalls and to provide certainty and security for the future.