I have a common law marriage, haven’t I?

Many people believe that if they have lived together for six months, they have the same rights as a married couple. This is not the case and there is no such thing as a common law marriage. This means that if the relationship breaks down, unmarried couples do not have the same protection as married couples have from the divorce court but may have the same financial matters to deal with. These financial matters include, what happens to the family home, does one party have to pay maintenance to the other, what happens to savings and does one party have an interest in the other’s pension

With regard to the family home, this is dealt with purely by land law, not family law, so the starting point is to look at in whose name the property is owned and also how it is owned. Sometimes, one party might have contributed more money than the other even if the property is owned in joint names and it is possible for the property to be owned in unequal shares to reflect the financial contribution, eg, one party owns 75% and the other 25%. This will have been dealt with at the time of purchase. If there is a dispute on separation, an application can be made to a court for a declaration as to who owns the property. Where a property is owned in the sole name of one party and the other claims they have made financial contributions, a court can determine if the non-owner has gained a financial interest. A court can order a house to be sold but will take into account whether it was purchased as a family home and whether it is still needed as a home for children. There are other applications that can be made on behalf of children in respect of a property. This is quite a complicated area of law and requires specialist legal advice

With regard to maintenance, unmarried couples have no liability to pay maintenance for the other when the relationship ends. Parents have a responsibility to pay maintenance for children not living with them and this is dealt with by the Child Maintenance Service

Savings are owned by the person in whose name the account is. It is possible to make an application for an interest in the other party’s savings if you have contributed to them and again, this requires specialist legal advice

Unmarried people have no right to claim against their partner’s pension if they split. They may be named as beneficiary on death or be able to make a claim on the death of the partner, but there is no available claim just on separation

Please get in touch if you require any more detailed advice and I will be happy to assist