Is cohabitation law finally about to change?

Despite what many people believe, there is no such thing as a “common law husband” or “common law wife”. It doesn’t matter if you’ve lived together for two years, ten years or thirty years. In England and Wales, living together does not give you the same legal rights as marriage or civil partnership.
Family lawyers have been saying for years that the law has fallen behind modern family life. Governments have talked about reform, but very little has changed. At the moment, married couples have very wide reaching claims against each other. There is no equivalent system for unmarried couples. Instead, unmarried couples might be able to rely on:
1. Property law, which usually means the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996. The problem with this is that the rules are strict, there’s very little room for discretion or fairness; and that can lead to harsh outcomes in a family scenario. Also, these are difficult and expensive cases to run. Often the only way to resolve these cases s is a final hearing with evidence, and that is very expensive; and you might lose. Ultimately a judge listens to you, and to your ex, and decides who they believe more.
2. Schedule 1 of the Children Act 1989, which gives the court limited powers to make financial orders if you have children.
In June 2026 the Government launched a consultation proposing significant changes to the rights of cohabiting couples. The consultation follows long-standing calls for reform and recognises that millions of couples are living together without marrying.
Take a couple who have lived together for many years. One may have reduced their working hours to care for children. The other may own the house. If the relationship breaks down, the financially weaker partner can be in grim financial position.
The Government’s consultation asks whether that is still appropriate in modern society. Among the proposals being considered are financial claims for qualifying cohabitants following separation and stronger inheritance rights when an unmarried partner dies without a will.
It is also very unlikely that cohabitation will become the same as marriage. Successive reform proposals have tried to strike a balance. On one hand, there is a desire to protect vulnerable people who may have made sacrifices during a relationship. On the other hand, there is a recognition that some couples deliberately choose not to marry and do not want the full legal consequences of marriage imposed upon them.
Some people have actively chosen not to get married, to avoid the financial implications. To put it bluntly, when an unmarried couple separate, the financially stronger partner may be happy with the current legal framework and the financially weaker party may be unhappy.
Any new law needs to consider how long should a couple have to live together before rights arise? The impact of children? Should couples be required to opt in? Or be able to opt out? That makes a massive difference. People tend not to bother to opt in or out, particularly at the start of a relationship, when they’re not thinking about splitting up. And no one knows what the future holds.
What seems increasingly difficult to justify, however, is the public misunderstanding of the law. Surveys regularly show that many people believe they have legal rights which simply do not exist. By the time they discover the reality, the relationship has often already ended.
For now this is a consultation. Any changes to the law are likely to take years.
What should you do today? Firstly do not assume the law will protect you because you have lived together for a long time. If you own property together, take advice about how it should be held. We can prepare a cohabitation agreement to address this. Also, make a will, check pension nominations, consider whether you own your house as joint tenants or tenants in common.
These issues are far easier, and far cheaper, to address while the relationship is healthy than after it has broken down.
Peter Baughan is a solicitor at BBL Family Law. If you would like advice about cohabitation agreements, property ownership, separation or any other family law issue, please contact our team.