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Family law organisations and practitioners have renewed calls for reform of the law affecting cohabiting couples following the closure of the Government’s A Fairer End to Relationships consultation.
Jo Edwards, Head of Family at Forsters and Chair of Resolution’s Family Law Reform Committee, said the law needed to better reflect the way modern families live. She argued that cohabiting couples are the fastest-growing family type in the UK, while many people continue to believe that living together creates legal rights and responsibilities comparable to marriage.
Edwards said the continuing belief in “common law marriage” left many people vulnerable to financial hardship when relationships broke down or a partner died. She highlighted the position of unmarried couples who share homes, raise children, combine their finances or make sacrifices for their family, but who may not have the legal protections they expect.
She argued that the financially weaker partner and any children should not be exposed to hardship because the law had failed to keep pace with modern family life. However, she also acknowledged that some people may not wish to be subject to a new legal framework for unmarried couples, and said any reform should respect those views while avoiding unfairness or financial hardship for partners and children.
Resolution has also published its full response to the consultation, describing cohabitation reform as an urgent priority. The organisation said its response supported changes in this area and also provided members’ views on proposals to reform financial arrangements on divorce, aimed at providing greater certainty and clarity when marriages end.
Graeme Fraser, chair of Resolution’s Cohabitation Committee, said the organisation had campaigned for meaningful cohabitation reform for many years and that its members regularly saw the hardship caused by the existing legal framework. He said it was now time to deliver what he described as a long-overdue change and a key manifesto commitment of the current Government.
The Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEX) has similarly called for reform, describing it as time to address the widespread “myth” of the common law spouse. Following a survey of specialist family law members, CILEX said that bringing the law closer to public understanding could help individuals make informed decisions about their legal position and financial arrangements, including whether to make a will.
CILEX said it supported cohabitation rights in principle, although its members were divided over the proposed qualifying period for couples without children. Nearly half considered a three-year period too long, with some supporting a shorter period, particularly where a couple has children.
CILEX president Sara Fowler said reform should promote greater clarity, consistency and fairness, while also requiring robust judicial guidance, adequate court resources, specialist training and effective public education. She added that any new framework would need to balance legal certainty with sufficient flexibility to achieve fair outcomes and protect vulnerable individuals and children.
