Cohabiting couples live together without marriage. Their legal rights are very different than married couples. In simple terms, when ending an unmarried relationship, not all assets are equally divided between the former couple. They can’t claim ownership of each other’s property, and neither can they claim alimony or some other form of financial support.
Everyone knows that ending a marriage has long-term legal consequences, especially when children are involved. Similarly, ending a long-term cohabiting relationship also carries some legal issues, but not as many. You should visit Roseville divorce law firm to ensure your rights are protected.
This article provides a brief overview of the differences between the legal rights of married and cohabiting couples.
Cohabitation in California Law
California has no common law marriage. It means no statuette confers the rights of a married couple upon the two cohabiting people. There are some exception to this rule, like if the cohabiting couple moved from another state where common law marriage is recognized.
In some situations, a couple may believe they are married when they are actually not. For example, if the couple hired an official that did not have the authority to marry people, their marriage ceremony may not be legally binding. However, the law will not allow this flawed technicality to stop the cohabiting couple from being recognized as married.
A domestic partnership is another interesting concept. It offers benefits similar to a marriage to a couple that has not actually married. A new California law allows any couple to apply for a domestic partnership and enjoy similar arrangements as married couples.
Please note that domestic partnership is not federally recognized. It may make sponsoring a non-citizen domestic partner for citizenship, sharing federal employee benefits and other rights of married couples outside California just as difficult.
Finances for Cohabiting Couples in California
In California, unmarried cohabitants may live together, but they are legally regarded as two separate and distinct individuals regarding their finances. Therefore, they cannot own joint bank accounts, investments or savings accounts. If they own anything jointly, they will receive equal shares upon division, especially when there is no other legally recognizable agreement between them. Cohabitation does not allow for alimony upon separation upon ending their relationship. However, if the couple had a child or children, a partner may be entitled to child support.
Children for Cohabiting Couples in California
If two cohabitants have children together, some laws apply when deciding child custody. In California, both parents enjoy equal rights regarding their children. However, custody and child support decisions still need to be determined by a family court judge.
Firstly, paternity must be established for a child of an unmarried couple to receive inheritance or child support. It can either be established with simple agreement from the parents or through proof, like a medical test.
Property for Cohabiting Couples in California
If a cohabiting couple jointly owns a house or some other property, it will be equally divided between them upon separation. If the property is listed under the ownership of only a single person but the other claims to have contributed to its payments, he or she may need legal counsel to claim part ownership in said property. A judge will make a final decision on the division of such property.
