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14 March 2014 / Claire Clarke
Issue: 7598 / Categories: Features , Family
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The lives we live

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Marriage-lite or a new set of rights? Claire Clarke examines the legal options open for cohabitants
The way we were: once upon a time, there was respectable marriage which conferred financial dependence and security on the woman. Outside a world of defiance of convention and no rights except minimal support for the child.

 

The way we are: cohabitation has lost stigma and become a parallel life choice. As many as 40% of all couples now cohabit and one in four children is born outside marriage. Notwithstanding this, English law does not recognise a coherent legal system of relations and obligations called cohabitation. The notion of a “common law marriage” remains a lingering myth which is serving to leave a significant number of people vulnerable and surprised that the law does not offer them similar protection to their married counterparts.

A recent survey of MPs has revealed that 69% of parliamentarians agree that there is a mistaken belief in the existence of “common law marriage” among their constituents and that 57% of MPs

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

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Sponsored by
Walkers—Muriel Marseille

Walkers—Muriel Marseille

Ashurst's Chief Risk Officer joins Walkers

Excello Law—John Osborne

Excello Law—John Osborne

Northern family lawyer John Osborne joins Excello

mfg Solicitors—Rebecca Rogers, Kennedy Langley & Victoria Griffiths

mfg Solicitors—Rebecca Rogers, Kennedy Langley & Victoria Griffiths

Trio of promotions announced at Kidderminster law firm mfg Solicitors

NEWS
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A sole director can conspire with their own company for the purposes of the tort of unlawful means conspiracy, the High Court has ruled in a judgment with potentially wide implications for business disputes
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The Chancery Division's long history comes to an end this autumn as it is reborn as the Business and Property Division, prompting questions over whether the shake-up is really necessary
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) continues to show that failing to disclose regulatory issues can attract harsher consequences than the original misconduct itself
NLJ this week: Costs sting after a courtroom gamble
Rejecting a generous settlement can prove an expensive mistake, as two recent high-profile cases demonstrate
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