The incidence of cohabitation is growing. In recent years there has been a decline in marriage rates in Scotland, coupled with major changes in the ways in which people tend to form families. Relationships between cohabiting couples, like marriage and civil partnership create various legal rights and obligations for the parties involved. There is very little public knowledge of the claims that can be made, should you decide to separate. Are you aware of your cohabitation rights, and potential liabilities? If you separate, a claim can be made if you have suffered economic disadvantage in the interests of the other cohabitant, for instance:
- if you gave up a career in order to look after home and hearth, or
- made a financial contribution to the net value of his or her house.
The size of the claim will depend on several factors including the amount of your financial disadvantage at the end of the relationship. If your cohabitant dies without a will then you may have a claim to his or her estate, including the house you shared together. The time limits are frighteningly short. If you separate, although you have 12 months from the date when you stopped cohabiting in which to settle your claim or raise proceedings in Court, the clock may start ticking earlier than the date when one or other of you walked out of the door. It is quite possible to live under the same roof without cohabiting – particularly if things are becoming unhappy and you are going to separate.
Remember the 12 month period begins when you stop cohabiting, not when you stop living in the same house. If you think you might have a claim, don’t delay– seek advice as soon as possible. If your cohabitant dies, you have only 6 months from the date of death in which to make your claim for part of the intestate estate. You’ll need legal advice about this urgently. If you are currently happily cohabiting, or thinking about moving in together then it’s worth considering a Cohabitation Agreement with your partner to detail what should happen – if anything – in the event that you do split later on.
An Agreement can avoid acrimony, expense and potentially litigation further down the track, and has the advantage that both parties will be able to agree financial arrangements between them both during the cohabitation, and on the ending of cohabitation. A Cohabitation Agreement is as romantic as a pair of beige polyester bed socks, but sometimes even more useful.
