Couples come to see me having lived together for many years, in the entirely reasonable belief that the length of the relationship has earned them something in law. It has not. In Jersey, unmarried partners have almost no automatic claim to each other’s property, finances or estate, whether the relationship ends or one of them dies.
That gap tends to be discovered at the worst possible moment, either at separation or in the weeks following a bereavement. It is one of the few areas of my work where the law regularly takes people by surprise, and where a modest amount of planning beforehand would have made an enormous difference.
Why Jersey law treats cohabiting couples differently
Jersey family law recognises marriage and civil partnership as formal legal statuses. Cohabitation, by contrast, is a domestic arrangement with no legal standing of its own, and nothing accrues to it with the passage of time.
The consequences follow that. If one partner dies without a will, the survivor usually has no automatic inheritance rights. On separation, there is generally no automatic entitlement to share property or pensions, and the outcome will depend on matters such as how assets are owned, what each partner contributed and whether any particular claim is available. The courts have limited powers to intervene, and only in specific circumstances concerning children or dependency.
I regularly see couples who have built a life and accumulated assets together, only to find they have no legal claim to any of it when circumstances change. It is not a position anyone should accept without at least having thought about it.
Where the gaps show up in practice
Property is usually the first issue, especially if the home is in one partner’s sole name. The other has no automatic right to it, even where they have paid the mortgage or funded improvements, but savings and investments held separately remain entirely separate.
Inheritance is the area where the consequences are hardest to put right after the event. If you die without a will, your estate passes according to Jersey’s intestacy rules, and those rules generally do not give an unmarried partner an automatic share.
Pensions and life insurance work differently again. Death benefits and policy proceeds depend on the terms of the scheme or policy, on any nomination that has been made, and on the discretion of the trustees or insurer. That makes nominations something to check rather than assume.
Children do not alter the underlying position. Either parent can apply for child support or a parental responsibility order, but cohabitation itself creates no automatic rights protecting a child’s interests in property or inheritance.
Your next steps
The remedy is usually straightforward: a cohabitation agreement. It is a legally binding contract that can set out how you will deal with property and finances, and what happens if you separate. It gives both partners certainty and removes the ambiguity from conversations that are considerably harder to have later. Clients sometimes worry that raising it is unromantic. I would say it is practical protection for the life you have built together.
Alongside that, check your will, your life insurance and your pension arrangements, and make sure your partner is named as a beneficiary wherever you intend them to inherit. It is also worth considering whether owning property jointly would suit you. However, joint ownership carries its own legal implications and is worth discussing with a solicitor before you commit to it.
How Parslows LLP can help
Living together should be about building a future, not worrying about what might happen if things go wrong. At Parslows LLP, we help cohabiting couples understand their position, protect their interests and put sensible arrangements in place from the outset.
Whether you need a cohabitation agreement, advice on how property is owned or a review of your estate planning, we provide clear and practical advice tailored to your circumstances.
Contact us on +44(0)1534 630530 or email enquiries@parslowsjersey.com to discuss your situation.