If you are in a serious relationship or a serious relationship has just ended and you want to discuss your rights to community ownership or ongoing support after a breakup, you will need an experienced family lawyer in Philadelphia. Lawyers at Sadek and Cooper law firms can help you make arrangements or enforce your rights with your long-term or life partner. For a consultation, call us at 215-814-0395. Marriage is a legal union between two people. To be validly married in most states, a couple must purchase a marriage certificate and have the marriage solemnly celebrated with a ceremony. Yet some states recognize de facto marriage, which extends many of the same benefits as marriage without a license or ceremony. Many couples live together before getting married or choose not to marry at all. However, unmarried couples living together have different legal rights than married couples. Unmarried couples do not have the same legal protection as married couples; And they also have less responsibility to each other in the event of separation. If you don`t have a condo and children, you may not have legal problems to solve when you break up with a long-term partner. But if you have property or children and are in Pennsylvania or New Jersey, talk to a Petrelli Previtera attorney about your rights during and after your separation. Coodin & Overson, PLLP, has helped a number of couples successfully resolve their disagreements and achieve a fair division of community property. We are both experienced negotiators and strong advocates who understand the practical and legal aspects of breakdowns and other aspects of family law.
We take data protection very seriously. We use your data to work for you – mainly the professional legal and financial services you have requested. Our privacy policy explains in detail how we collect, store, process and use your personal data. Read our Legal Services Privacy Policy and our Financial Services Privacy Policy. What happens when people who have lived together for a long time decide to separate? How do they allocate their assets? What happens to their home? It is crucial that unmarried couples prepare written housing contracts about property, home and other important issues. Doing this while your relationship is going well will help alleviate many of the problems if you ever break up. Remember that properly drafted housing contracts are legally enforceable in court. Most importantly, a written agreement on living together can minimize the very possibility of going to court. In Pennsylvania and most states, there is no automatic way to receive child support for unmarried couples. If an unmarried couple separates, even if they have lived together for many years or share children, there is no automatic way to continue receiving financial support from your ex. Some couples had no choice.
Prior to the June 2015 Supreme Court decision to make same-sex marriage legal nationwide, gay and lesbian couples in Michigan bought homes together and shared the joint parenting of each other`s children — but were not legally married. For example, under Maryland law, there is a presumption against a roommate. This means that documents, such as deeds, must expressly state that the property must be the property as a roommate in order for it to be legally recognized as such. For example, the deed must explicitly state that the property is called a “common tenant.” Without this wording, it is assumed that the property is a colocation. When an unmarried couple opens a joint bank account together, they become financially bound to some extent. Many couples are not aware of this – the importance of opening a joint account is not always obvious. For example, if you break up, nothing could stop either partner from withdrawing all the money from the account – and very few things you can do to get the money back. Opening a joint account can also affect your credit score.
If your partner has a bad credit score or payment defaults associated with the account, it can affect your personal credit score. Legally, cohabiting couples have no financial responsibility for each other when they separate. When your relationship ends, you have no legal responsibility to financially support your former partner. Some couples have chosen to sign domestic partnership documents during their relationship. They worked with a lawyer to create powers of attorney and wills, and fought for their partners to be recognized as qualified domestic partners. In the process of protecting their rights as partners, their lawyer probably encouraged them to consider legal agreements on spousal and child benefits and separation of assets in the event of separation. As long as the documents have been freely signed by both parties, any partnership termination agreement should be recognized and enforceable by the courts. In addition, unmarried parents can sign legally binding parenting plans that cover custody issues in the event of separation. Think of it as a post-marriage contract without marriage. In most states, none of the unmarried partners are entitled to food assistance after separation unless there is evidence of a clear agreement to provide assistance after separation. In some States, this must be a written agreement. Keep in mind that the fact that one of you supported the other during your relationship, or that you signed mutually planned wills after death, is usually not unrelated to asking for help.
Unmarried couples in a long-term relationship are likely to have many of the same dreams, goals, and commons as married couples, but remain without the same legal protection when they separate. A separation from an unmarried couple raises many of the same types of problems that spouses face during a divorce, and in some cases, they can be even more complicated. Joshua Coombe, partner and family law lawyer at Tees, is an expert on the legal rights of unmarried couples. Here, Joshua explains some of the most important legal points that unmarried couples should consider before moving in together. Call 651-319-5180 or email us to schedule a free consultation at our Woodbury, Minnesota office. We can discuss your situation and how our law firm can help you assert your rights. Nowadays, it is more common for romantic partners to live together before or as an alternative to marriage.
