A cohabitation agreement is a form of legal agreement reached between a couple who have chosen to live together (whether they are heterosexual or homosexual). In some ways, such a couple may be treated like a married couple, such as when applying for a

mortgage A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law (legal system), civil law jurisdictions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners t ...

or working out

child support Child support (or child maintenance) is an ongoing, periodic payment made by a parent for the financial benefit of a child (state or parent, caregiver, guardian) following the end of a marriage or other similar relationship. Child maintenance is ...

. However, in some other areas, such as property rights,

pension A pension (; ) is a fund into which amounts are paid regularly during an individual's working career, and from which periodic payments are made to support the person's retirement from work. A pension may be either a " defined benefit plan", wh ...

s and

inheritance Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offi ...

, they are treated differently. A cohabitation agreement contains documentation for a couple who want to live together in order to protect themselves from unnecessary cost and litigation should their cohabitation break down. They can clearly regulate their property rights and what arrangements might be made for mutual financial support, dealing with

debt Debt is an obligation that requires one party, the debtor, to pay money Loan, borrowed or otherwise withheld from another party, the creditor. Debt may be owed by a sovereign state or country, local government, company, or an individual. Co ...

, caring for

child A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...

ren, etc. The agreement also, much like a prenuptial agreement, allows the individuals concerned to determine in advance who will keep specific assets and what will happen to assets that have been purchased jointly if they separate. This agreement is intended to bind both parties.

Purpose

Cohabitation agreements can provide the members of a relationship the sense that their financial commitments to each other will be enforceable, and that assets acquired or improved during the relationship will be divided fairly. In the absence of an agreement it may be difficult to determine ownership of assets acquired during a relationship. For assets such as real estate or motor vehicles, ownership may be resolved based upon title ownership without regard to whether the partner not named on the title contributed to the purchase or maintenance.

Common law marriage

Common law marriage occurs when two people enter into a marriage without going through the formalities typically required, such as obtaining a marriage license or having a formal marriage ceremony. Not all jurisdictions recognize common law marriage, and there are no common law jurisdictions in which cohabitation of itself will result in a couple being regarded as legally married.

Prenuptial agreements

Prenuptial agreements are often used when one or both parties to a planned marriage want to protect their assets from claims by the other in the event that the marriage ends in divorce. The contract aims to achieve a measure of certainty about what the financial consequence would be if the marriage came to an end. Courts may retain discretion about whether or not a prenuptial agreement will be upheld.

References

{{reflist Contract law Legal documents

Purpose

Common law marriage

Prenuptial agreements

See also

References