A cohabitation agreement can be a crucial financial underpinning of your relationship. An experienced Tempe family law attorney at Blake & Pulsifer can help protect you by negotiating or reviewing this agreement.

When you choose to live together as an unmarried couple, you are taking a legal risk. You do not have to let the potential risk get in the way of your relationship decisions. Both parties can take action to protect themselves and define the financial terms of their relationship through negotiating a cohabitation agreement. This legally binding contract can reduce friction in the relationship and provide you with some certainty in the future.

Schedule an appointment with a Tempe family lawyer at Blake & Pulsifer by calling our team at 480-838-3000 to learn more about cohabitation agreements and whether they are right for your situation. We can provide you with practical legal advice and solutions in your circumstances.

You Do Not Have Legal Protections Under Arizona Family Laws When You Live Together

Arizona law does not recognize common law marriage when people live together for an extended period of time. You are not without some legal risk when you are involved in a prolonged cohabitation relationship. You may want to get your agreement with your partner in writing to protect both of you legally. It may make sense for you to consider a cohabitation agreement that addresses major financial issues between you and your partner.

Arizona’s community property law does not apply to cohabiting couples who are not married. Accordingly, you do not have many legal protections if the relationship eventually ends because there is no equitable distribution. However, there may be some circumstances in which each may gain rights to certain property. For example, you may have rights if you and your partner jointly purchased property, such as a home, together. You may also have rights if you deliberately combine certain assets during the course of your relationship. These rights originate from conscious decisions that you have made, and you may lack them if you did not take any of these actions.

There are certain things that you may want to put in writing and make part of a binding agreement, both to reduce potential conflict with your partner and to protect yourself legally. For example, there may be property that is acquired in both of your names (cohabiting partners do not have rights to property that is titled in the other partner’s name). Hypothetically, you may purchase a property with your partner. Both of you may be making a substantial financial investment. Given the amount of money at stake, you cannot simply hope for the best. Although you may have property rights in the circumstances, you want to have as much predictability as possible in case the relationship ends.

What May Be a Part of a Cohabitation Agreement

In addition, you may want to consider formalizing the financial arrangements between you and your partner. You may include the following in a cohabitation agreement:

  • Which property each partner brought into the relationship, and what happens in the event that property is jointly acquired when living together
  • How household debt is to be divided between the two partners
  • The division of expenses related to the household, such as the mortgage, utilities and insurance
  • Whether one spouse would need to provide temporary support to the other when the relationship ends
  • Provisions that determine how financial disputes between the two partners are to be resolved

As you can see, a cohabitation agreement is similar in spirit to a prenuptial agreement. However, the cohabitation agreement does not usually remain in effect if the partners choose to get married. You can include a provision to the contrary in any cohabitation agreement, since you have the freedom to negotiate as you wish. Many couples will incorporate the cohabitation agreement into a prenuptial contract if they decide to get married.

Is a Cohabitation Agreement Enforceable?

Cohabitation agreements are fully enforceable in Arizona courts provided that they meet the general legal requirements for a contract. They must be negotiated between the two parties, and they must also be voluntary and fair. In other words, a cohabitation agreement cannot be reached when one party has coerced another. The court will also decline to enforce an agreement that is obviously one-sided in favor of one partner over the other. Accordingly, each spouse should have their own attorney when negotiating a cohabitation agreement to ensure that it is valid and enforceable if necessary.

Contact a Tempe Family Law Firm

Get legal advice and help with your potential cohabitation agreement by speaking to a Tempe family law attorney at Blake & Pulsifer. You can schedule an initial consultation with one of our lawyers by filling out an online contact form or by calling us today at 480-838-3000.