In a society where living together as opposed to taking the formal step into marriage is increasing globally, so too does the need for the public to understand Cohabitation.
A common misperception is that the cohabitees acquire the same rights as spouses of a marriage in community of property and that therefore at the termination of the relationship, maintenance and division of assets can be claimed. This cannot be further from the true state of affairs and it is therefore essential that you enter into a Cohabitation Agreement with your partner to regulate the position should the relationship end.
For some reason however, cohabitees feel uncomfortable to enter into a cohabitation agreement and in practice rarely do, probably because they do not want to pressure their partners or seem as if they do not trust their partners. Reality is that if no such Cohabitation Agreement exists during the relationship, neither do most of your rights at the termination thereof as there is no obligation for maintenance or division of assets and liabilities. You might find yourself in the midst of complex litigation to obtain your fair share.
Cawood Attorneys deals with this complex issue whether there is a Cohabitation Agreement in place or not, and we encourage anyone who requires our services to contact us for a consultation.