People who live together having families and property but who do not marry present problems that are sometimes more difficult than those of married couples.

There are also the usual issues relating to children including;

Parental Responsibility of the father, Child Support, Residence and Contact

The financial and property issues between unmarried couples can be messy and difficult relying on the Courts conclusions as to the parties intentions and contributions.

One of the main problems is the predicament of the unmarried homemaker and mother who may after many years of living in a family relationship find that she has rights to child maintenance but no right of support for herself.  The Law Commission is currently working on proposals for new legislation but for the present the situation of the unmarried woman or in any event the economically dependent partner remains difficult and unsatisfactory.

One of the anomalies in relation to unmarried couples is that the unmarried partner who may have very few rights during the lifetime of the other does have inheritance rights where a dependency can be established.  In the event of death there may be a claim against the estate of the deceased partner.  The extent of dependency and the claim depends on many factors and needs to be carefully examined in each case.  It is particularly important that unmarried couples express their wishes clearly in well made Wills. 

See our Wills page

Our approach to financial issues on separation is practical and constructive. 

Please see our Civil Partnerships page for information on pre-marital agreements

You can contact Claire and John by email or telephone and we will give you a prompt and clear response. This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Telephone : +44 115 958 0584