Percy Hughes & Roberts Solicitors

There has been a lot of discussion this week about the long awaited judgement from the Supreme Court in the case of Jones and Kermot.  

This case dealt with the appropriate outcome following cohabitees separating.  The case has been trumpeted in the press as ruling that where a cohabiting couple failed to make their own decision over the division of property when they separate, then it falls to the Judges to decide their intentions and decide what is fair.  

Really the case is only useful for those people who have a jointly owned property with no express declaration of Trust in the Transfer document (completed at the time of purchase), or any other written document.  It is far more likely to assist with properties owned jointly over a longer period of time rather than more recently purchased properties where the forms tend to have been completed with these express declarations.  

The law relating to cohabitees relationships which break down is still very unsatisfactory.  It is not the same as the law relating to marriage and there is no such thing as a common law wife despite the common assumption that there is.  Years of attempted reform for cohabitee’s rights have not got off the ground as successive Governments have shied away from reform due to political ramifications. 

It is very important that couples who are thinking of living together and buying a property should have proper advice at the beginning of the case from their solicitor.  It is also important that cohabitees who are thinking of separating should also take legal advice as to the potential impact on the situation and what the likely outcome for them will be. 

While it may be unromantic to address ownership rights when you decide to move in with someone it is far better to take legal advice and reach agreement then than to find yourself facing your former cohabitee in a bitter court dispute years later.