Over 6 million people cohabit, many in legal ignorance

Over six million people in the UK choose to cohabit, of which 1.9 million have dependent children.  For many years Moore Blatch has tried to raise awareness of the fact that many couples fail to understand that they have little, if any, legal protection if they separate.  For this reason, law firm Moore Blatch supports Cohabitation Awareness Week, which runs from 27th November to 1st December.

Debra Emery, who heads the family legal team at Moore Blatch, warns that most cohabiting couples believe that they have ‘common law’ marriage protection, whereas in reality this is not the case.

Cohabitation Awareness Week is championed by Resolution, which was formerly known as the Solicitors Family Law Association.

Debra Emery, head of family, Moore Blatch, advises; "Many cohabiting couples wrongly believe that 'common law' means that if they separate, the same rules apply to them as if they were married.  I have witnessed cases where an individual misses out on tens of thousands of pounds, which if they had married their partner, they would have been fully entitled to.  I would therefore strongly advise any cohabiting couples that have joint assets to put in place a legal contract which specifies the joint ownership of those assets.”