Rights of Cohabitants: Legal and Social Implications

The assignment discusses the importance of cohabitation in modern society and the need for effective laws to protect cohabitants' rights. It highlights the challenges faced by cohabitants, such as lack of legal recognition, financial disputes, and child custody issues. The author argues that cohabitants should have a right to live together without legal intervention and proposes the creation of cohabitation contracts to resolve these issues.

Family Law Cohabitation

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
Presenting reasons due to which couples avoid marriage and civil partnership..........................1
Stating the manner in which former cohabitants resolve their legal issues at the end of their
relationship..................................................................................................................................2
3. Should former cohabitants have matrimonial-type financial rights towards each other?.......3
4. Should cohabitants have a right to live together as a couple without legal intervention?.......4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
BIBLIOGRAPHY............................................................................................................................6

INTRODUCTION
In England and Wales, there is the absence or lack of rules pertaining to ‘Common Law
Marriage’ which in turn negatively affects the protection of cohabitants. Hence, in the case of
relationship breakdown, divorce and civil partnership dissolution laws are not highly clear.
Usually, cohabiting couples assume similar kind of roles and responsibilities that married couple
have as per so-called common law marriage. Thus, report will shed light on the aspects that are
couple prefer to live together and avoid marriage. Besides this, it also entails the ways that are
considered by the cohabitants for resolving issues or problems. It also depicts the extent to which
cohabitants have right to live together and enjoying matrimonial-type financial rights
without any legal intervention.
Presenting reasons due to which couples avoid marriage and civil partnership
From research, it has assessed that couple who live together but avoid involving in
marriage and civil partnership arrangements have their own reasons. Hence, cohabitants have
different expectations and intentions due to which they avoid to do marriage. In the lecture,
delivered in London, concerned authority presented that with the motive to get financial benefits
men avoid marriage and civil partnership. Moreover, in the case of marriage, after divorce man is
entitled to make periodic payment to woman. Hence, it is one the main reasons that is considered
by male while carry out live in relationship1. In my opinion, along with the monetary benefits,
there are several other aspects that may cause for not getting married such as freedom in relation
to living and doing jobs etc. Statistical results show that in UK tendency of cohabitant couples
are increasing with the very high pace.
1 The Marriage Problem: Why Many Are Choosing Cohabitation Instead. 2017. [Online].
Available through: <https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/02/the-marriage-problem-
why-many-are-choosing-cohabitation-instead/252505/>.

In UK, 13% of children are living with 2 million cohabiting couple. Considering the case
of Burns V Burns [1984], it can be stated that freedom is one of the main aspects that encourage
couple to avoid legal arrangements such as marriage and civil partnership. Hence, cohabitant’s
couple has opportunity to live freely without any boundations. Besides this, in cohabitation, both
the entities share their expenses and live same as married couple. On the other side, it has
identified that marriage is a big commitment so due to the afraid of having same couples give
priority to live in relationship aspect. However, it is to be critically evaluated that commitment is
also highly required in cohabitation or live in relationship. Nevertheless, marriage involves the
complexity in relation to divorce that is recognized as a central reason of couple regarding not to
get married2. Thus, all the above depicted aspects may be served as the main reasons that
motivate individual to choose cohabitation rather than marriage.
Stating the manner in which former cohabitants resolve their legal issues at the end of their
relationship
Former cohabitants resolve their issues through the means of mutual discussion and
taking the resort of legal aspects. In the case of Stack V Dowden [2007], cohabitant couple who
has four children, was concerned pertaining to the property issue at the time of separation. In
this, court gave judgment in the favor of Mr Stack due to having joint relationship in the property
irrespective of the aspect that female candidate was high earner and cash contributor3. This
aspect shows that cohabitants take also support of law for resolving their matters. From
assessment, it has found that there is a need to build an autonomy that assists cohabitants in
sorting their legal issues. In the lecture, DBE presented that for cohabitants there is a need in
relation to the recognition of contracts.
2 Couples’ Reasons for Cohabitation: Associations with Individual Well-Being and Relationship
Quality. 2017. [Online]. Available through: <
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2743430/>.
3 Baroness Deech of Cumnor DBE. 2017. [Online]. Available through: <
https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/cohabitation-and-the-law >.

Further, there is a requirement to encourage cohabitants in relation to making wills. In
other words, it can be presented that cohabitants also must have right in relation to leaving their
property for the partner. However, on the other side, proposal of automatic inheritance for
cohabitants, part 4 of Intestacy and Family provision (2009), is suffering on the ground of
illogicalities. In my opinion, for offering protection to both the entities specifically women it is
highly required to introduce some specific rules. Moreover, in the absence of having any
structured rules or arrangements both the entities would not become able to resolve their issues
in satisfactorily manner. Along with this, there must be rule in relation to nominating each other
as beneficiaries in the context of insurance and pension options. Hence, specific rules and
regulations are highly required for offering protection to cohabitants at the end of their
relationship.
3. Should former cohabitants have matrimonial-type financial rights towards each other?
The laws framed for the married couples are created with a great sense of considering
every bit factor. This has assisted in resolving many issues that comes in the way. Cohabitation
being the similar concept of living together should have matrimonial-type financial rights
towards each other. This is essential to resolve the problems in terms of finances, property,
assets, etc. In my opinion, the weaker person usually have to face the lack of protection by
appropriate rights. Thus, if the relationship breaks up, the weaker partners generally the woman
who often have children may have to face real difficulties. In the financial-legislation framed for
the civil-partners, both parties have legal rights on the share of assets and to maintenance4. Also,
inherited property is included in the splitting.
On the other hand, cohabitants have no such rights regardless of the fact how many years
they had spend together5. The end of relationship clauses and the affects are more severe after
4 Sánchez Gassen, N. and Perelli-Harris, B., 2015. The increase in cohabitation and the role
of union status in family policies: A comparison of 12 European countries. Journal of
European Social Policy. 25(4). pp.431-449.
5 Stepien-Sporek, A. and Ryznar, M., 2016. The Consequences of Cohabitation. USFL
Rev.. 50. pp.75.

involvement of children. It creates problem associated with the maintenance. It is thus required
to undergo proper contracts regarding the finances to ensure proper upbringing of the children.
There are times when some cohabitant have to face frauds due to absence of suitable laws. In
addition to this, any claims made against those person are waste as there are no rights. The most
that can be done by tribunals is to bring fairness but what about the losses one has to face after
this type of splitting? The intentions of grabbing financial benefits from any person is a crime
and should be stopped by implementation effective laws for the live-in-relationships. The legal
and technical complexity raised by fitting the case in other legislation such as property, land,
trust, etc. just increases the cost spend to fight in the courts. Hence, in my opinion, there should
be framing of effective laws for the former cohabitants similar to the matrimonial-type financial
rights to decrease the number of frauds and to empower the weaker partners.
4. Should cohabitants have a right to live together as a couple without legal intervention?
In the present date, there are around 14% couple that are living together without any legal
intervention. The statistics of live-in-relationships has doubled as compared to the last ten years.
This increment has also brought major issues along with it. It is suggested to such couples to
partner by drawing up a legal agreement called a cohabitation agreement. It will help in counting
them as paired up which will further help them in claiming the rights under this contract. In my
opinion, the main reason behind it is the absence of legal interventions. There exist different
challenges which are raised after the live-in relationships such as the number of frauds, absence
of financial supports, challenges faced in upbringing of children, absence of right to
maintenance, etc. These issues further impacts on the rising of other crimes that suffers the
nation. In case, if the cohabitants undergoes the legal agreement then they can reserved their
rights. This will assist them in claiming to any mishap in the future6. It has been further observed
that, in case if a cohabitant partner dies due to injuries faced at work then the other can receive
the funds but it is only possible when they have made a legal contract of cohabitation. It is thus
helpful for them to get registered themselves under the contract.
6 Perelli‐Harris, B. and Styrc, M., 2017. Mental Well‐Being Differences in Cohabitation
and Marriage: The Role of Childhood Selection. Journal of Marriage and Family.

In addition to this, living together after undertaking proper formalities of cohabitation
contract will help in resolving many issues that are faced at the time of break-up. The financial
problems are main of them7. It has been observed that the weaker partner always have to face the
challenges with the assets and other property. Also, one of the major among all is the
responsibility of children as parent. The informal arrangement for contact of parent ( with whom
the child in not living) with the child can be avail by this agreement under the orders of court. In
addition to this, without legal interventions there will be no right on the proper of the surviving
partner if the other dies.
CONCLUSION
From the present report, it can be concluded that cohabitation has became an important
aspect of present society. Administration should seek in the matter of framing appropriate rights
for cohabitants to remove the legal and technical complexity of fitting cases in totally irrelevant
legislations. Also, in order to claim and preserve rights, couple living together without civil-
partnering should made "cohabitation contract".
7 Hamplová, D., Le Bourdais, C. and Lapierre‐Adamcyk, É., 2014. Is the Cohabitation–
Marriage Gap in Money Pooling Universal?. Journal of Marriage and Family. 76(5).
pp.983-997.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/cohabitation-and-the-law
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/02/the-marriage-problem-why-many-are-
choosing-cohabitation-instead/252505/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2743430/