Danielle Blaylock is one of our specialist Civil Litigation Solicitors. In this short article she explains what happens when co-habiting couples assume they both have a legal interest in their shared home.
Nowadays, many couples live together without being married or in a civil partnership. It’s quite common for people to be in a relationship and each be paying towards joint living costs, happily believing that they both have equal rights to the ‘family home’.
Unfortunately, however, despite the common belief that the act of co-habiting whilst paying towards the same property means you both own it, the reality can be very different. Not knowing exactly where you stand in these situations can have very serious ramifications, especially if the nature of your relationship with your partner changes or worse, your partner dies without leaving a will.
From a legal standpoint ownership of a property doesn’t automatically pass to another person simply because they have been contributing towards the costs of that property. In cases where the property that co-habiting partners are sharing is registered in only one of the couple’s names, it can mean that the future of the other partner can become uncertain should something happen. For instance, if the property isn’t registered in your name, what happens if you split up with your partner or, worse, they pass away?
Individuals in this position can find themselves in a situation where they are asked to leave the place they consider to be their home. Despite paying towards a house for many years, a co-habiting partner does not have an automatic legal interest in a ‘shared’ property.
As society develops and the nature of contemporary relationships change the situation described above can clearly be seen as extremely unfair. This has caused case law to develop to protect people in these exact circumstances. Case law now enables co-habiting individuals, whether in a relationship or not, to claim an interest in a property, and in some instances lay claim to the full property depending on the representations made.
Civil property disputes – what you should do?
If relationships between partners have already or may imminently change then careful analysis of discussions and intentions between the parties needs to be undertaken. Consideration will also need to be taken of payments made by each side towards the property - this can be complicated. For instance, not all payments made towards a family home can be used to establish an interest in the property.
If by following the process above one party can establish an interest in a disputed shared house, then an application can be made to the court. That application can enable a judge to vary the beneficial and sometimes legal ownership of the property.
If you are, or you know someone, in this situation, then you should act now. Danielle and Jackson Lees’ dedicated team of specialist civil and civil litigation solicitors are here to help individuals find out where they stand, whatever their status.
Organise a free confidential chat with one of our specialist, friendly and discrete civil law solicitors, by calling us on 0151 282 1700. You can also request a call back at your convenience or message us with your enquiry or concerns.