Cohabitation Agreement Solicitor

A Cohabitation Agreement Solicitor can assist those living together, or intending to, in creating a contract to provide security in the event that they separate. Such ‘living together contracts’ can be created for both unmarried couples (those in a relationship), and those who are cohabiting but not in a romantic relationship (such as friends or siblings).

If you are in a romantic relationship, you and your partner may wish to live together but do not want to get married or enter into a civil partnership. As an unmarried couple you do not have the same legal rights as those who are married. This is true no matter how long you have been in a relationship, despite popular belief regarding “common law marriages”.

Should your relationship break down to the point of separation, being unprotected by the laws of marriage can present a situation where one may leave the relationship with nothing.

This is true for those that live together but are not romantically involved, such as friends or siblings who have bought a house together.

A Cohabitation Agreement is a legal document for those that are planning on, or currently do, live together and are ‘unmarried’. It sets out arrangements for jointly owned assets or responsibilities in the event that the couple or partnership split up, become ill or die.

For advice and guidance in cohabitation agreements or other options available to you, please contact us through our contact page here. Alternatively, you can phone 0333 240 7373, or email us at info@reeds.co.uk.

James Ferry - Reeds Solicitors
James Ferry

Partner, Solicitor & Head of Department

Meet the team

How We Can Help

Our team of separation agreement solicitors can support any unmarried couples (whether romantic or not) ensure that their best interests are documented.

 

We have an insight honed from years of experience from creating such documents, which can help prevent mistakes or oversights when you create your agreement.

Our service includes:

  • Guidance in an Initial legal consultation for your circumstances and requirements.
  • Legal advice on implications of you signing a cohabitation agreement.
  • Assistance in collating the information required and the financial status of both parties.
  • Drafting a cohabitation agreement that reflects the agreement you both have.

Contact us if you would like to discuss how we can help you, we would be happy to hear from you. We advise thinking about cohabitation agreements as early as possible, especially when you are considering buying property together or living together. Seeking legal advice as soon as possible will allow you to live together with peace, knowing that every circumstance has been carefully considered.

For advice and guidance in cohabitation agreements or other options available to you, please contact us through our contact page here. Alternatively, you can phone 0333 240 7373, or email us at info@reeds.co.uk.

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FAQ

A Cohabitation Agreement is sometimes referred to as a ‘living together agreement’. It is a legal document which outlines how an unmarried couple will manage their assets and financial matters whilst living together. It also outlines what will happen to such assets in the event of a separation, illness or death.

An unmarried couple refers to anyone who has not entered into a marriage or civil partnership. This includes both romantic partners and non-romantic partnerships (such as friendships or siblings) which wish to live together.

Such a contract can provide a level of security, protection and peace of mind between two people who are not protected by the same rights afforded to a couple in marriage.

In the UK, Cohabitating is defined as an ‘unmarried couple’ who are living together in a long-term relationship. Traditionally this is seen as ‘resembling a marriage’, however cohabitants can cover those that are a couple in the non-romantic or relationship sense.

Such cohabitating unmarried couples can therefore include friends or siblings who choose to live together – especially where they decide to own property jointly.

In law, those that have not had their relationship legally recognised through marriage or civil partnership do not receive the same rights. This is true despite whether you have lived together for a long period of time, or if you have children together. For siblings or friends living together, there is no equivalent.

Having a legal document or contract like a cohabitation agreement can fill this gap. When paired with a will, it provides a level of protection in the event of illness, death or separation. An agreement can make sure you have a share of each other’s assets, access to each other’s pension, and next of kin rights in a medical emergency.

A cohabitation agreement can cover:

Property:

    • Ownership of land and property

    • How each of you have contributed to the deposits of property

    • Jointly bought items such as cars, furniture

Finances:

    • How joint bank accounts will be handled upon separation.

    • How any debts will be handled upon separation.

    • How each person contributes to expenses including rent, mortgage or household bills

    • Life insurance policies on each other

    • Nominated pension beneficiaries

Pets and Children:

    • What will happen to any pets that are owned by the couple.

    • How will any children be supported.

Any unmarried couple (whether a romantic couple or a partnership of some sort) who plan on living together should consider making a cohabitation agreement.

If you are planning to, or are currently living with your partner, friend or sibling then a legal agreement could be useful. By creating a legal document outlining your financial responsibilities and assets, you may prevent issues and disagreements in the future.

None. It is a common misunderstanding that living together as a couple for a period of time equates to a ‘common law marriage’ and provides a similar or equal level of legal rights and protection as a marriage or civil partnership. This is incorrect, as in UK law there is no such thing as a common law marriage.

Even if you have been living together as a couple for over 10 years, your legal rights as a couple are the same for any unmarried cohabitating couple in the UK.

Cohabitation agreements are technically not legally binding in the UK. However, so long as they are highly persuasive and done properly then the Court is able to uphold them. Therefore, providing that both of you have been honest about your finances and assets, it is highly likely that a court would enforce a cohabitation agreement as a legal contract if it has been created correctly and legally.

To start the process of creating a cohabitation agreement it is recommended that you sit down as a couple (romantic or otherwise). Consider what assets you have individually and jointly, and how you wish them to be divided in the event of a separation.

You should consider:

    • Property – both rented and owned.

    • Investments and savings.

    • Debts and financial responsibilities.

    • Pensions and insurance.

When instructing a solicitor, they may ask for supporting documents as well as providing a full, formal financial disclosure.

Yes, you can write your own cohabitation agreement. A quick search online can reveal many online templates for such legal contracts, however creating these documents can be tricky. Without a legal background it can be easily to unknowingly set your contract up to fail – with unprecise wording, failing to include information, and missing steps or parts of the process.

It is also important that those creating legal contracts understand the importance of pre-contract conditions that need to be met to ensure that the document is as legally enforceable in court as possible. It can be easy to spend time and effort creating a document which then holds no legal weight in court and can be easily dismissed by a solicitor representing your partner in a separation.

As such, the money saved in not using a solicitor can cost you dearly in the event of a separation where you come to rely on a cohabitation agreement. We highly recommend seeking legal advice before creating or entering into any legal agreement. It is a requirement that both signing parties take legal advice before entering into any legal agreement.

As mentioned above, there are many issues with creating your own cohabitation agreement (or any legal document) without the advice of a solicitor. The worst case scenario is that the contract you have created as a cohabitation agreement is quickly dismissed in court when you are relying on it to protect your interests.

A solicitor can ensure that any legal contract is created to be as binding as possible. This will ensure that it has been created correctly, includes all necessary legal clauses and has met all pre-contract conditions. A cohabitation agreement solicitor will ensure that you know your legal obligations under the agreement, and what implications there are for signing such an agreement.

So in spending a bit of money up-front in creating a cohabitation agreement can pay off when you come to rely on it later in court.

The cost of a cohabitation agreement can vary depending on whether you both (as an ‘unmarried couple’) are on the same page or not. If you need to involve external negotiation or meditation in making the agreement, then costs can be increased.

If you both have settled on what the agreement should be and outline, then the process should be reasonably free of complications.

We offer an hourly rate which would typically come to around £1500 plus VAT.

If your circumstances have changed since creating a cohabitation agreement, then contact your solicitor.

It is common for situations to change when living together, such as buying a property (or another property if you currently own one together), moving to another country, or having children together. A solicitor will be able to advise you on any changes that need to happen on the existing cohabitation agreement.

If you do not update an agreement so that it reflects your current situation and assets, your existing cohabitation agreement may not be legally binding when you come to rely on it.

If you and your partner choose to get married or enter into a civil partnership, the new legal rights you benefit from will mean the Cohabitation Agreement will no longer apply. That is to say that the marriage will supersede the agreement.

However, you can choose to use the cohabitation agreement as the foundation for a pre- or post-nuptial agreement outlining the original points into a new format.

There are times where you may want to use the original cohabitation agreement as evidence during a divorce or separation of marriage to help inform an amicable financial settlement. This will be taken as advisory rather than a legally binding contract, due to the circumstance changes created by marriage.