Cohabitation Agreement - Template, Sample Form Online Pro · UK-law

COHABITATION AGREEMENT

THIS DEED is made on ________ (day) ________ (month) ________ (year)

1. THE PARTIES

1.1. ________ (date of birth ________) of:

________

(the "First Party")

and

1.2. ________ (date of birth ________) of:

________

(the "Second Party")

together referred to as the "Parties" and each a "Party".

2. RECITALS

2.1. The Parties are living together, or intend to live together, as an unmarried couple in a relationship of cohabitation, and the purpose of this deed is to create legally binding arrangements regulating their financial and property affairs during the course of, and on termination of, their cohabitation.

2.2. The Parties intend that this deed shall be legally binding upon them and upon their respective heirs, personal representatives, trustees in bankruptcy and estates.

2.3. Each Party has, before executing this deed, received independent legal advice from a solicitor of their own choosing as to the meaning, nature and effect of this deed, and each has provided to the other full and frank disclosure of their financial circumstances.

2.4. The First Party independently owns the property and personal assets listed in Schedule 1 at the date of this deed.

2.5. The Second Party independently owns the property and personal assets listed in Schedule 2 at the date of this deed.

2.6. The Parties are each domiciled and habitually resident in England and Wales.

2.7. The Parties acknowledge that this deed does not, and is not intended to, oust the jurisdiction of the court in relation to any application that may be made under the Children Act 1989 or Schedule 1 to that Act in respect of the welfare and financial support of any child, and that nothing in this deed shall prejudice or limit any such application.

2.8. The Parties acknowledge that a cohabitation agreement of this nature is treated by the courts of England and Wales as a binding contract, provided it is freely entered into with a full appreciation of its implications, and they have entered into it on that basis and without undue influence or duress.

NOW THIS DEED WITNESSES AND THE PARTIES AGREE AS FOLLOWS:

3. ASSETS

3.1. All property in the exclusive ownership of one Party prior to the date of this deed shall remain the sole property of that Party, regardless of any increase in its value.

3.2. Clause 3.1 shall apply irrespective of any direct or indirect contribution made by either Party towards that property after the date of this deed, and no such contribution shall create or be taken to infer any beneficial interest in the property, whether under a resulting trust, constructive trust, proprietary estoppel or otherwise.

3.3. Any property acquired after the date of this deed solely by either Party shall remain the separate property of the acquiring Party unless they expressly agree otherwise in writing.

3.4. Any property acquired after the date of this deed jointly by both Parties shall be held by the Parties as beneficial joint tenants, unless they expressly declare otherwise in writing.

3.5. All property acquired jointly in accordance with clause 3.4 shall be owned in equal beneficial shares, irrespective of the contributions made by each Party, unless expressly provided otherwise in writing.

3.6. All items of personal use and adornment shall be the property of the Party by whom they are used, irrespective of their method of acquisition, unless expressly agreed otherwise in writing.

3.7. Each Party shall have full control of any property exclusively owned by them and shall be free to sell, lease, charge, mortgage or otherwise dispose of such property and to receive all income, rent and profits derived from it without restriction.

3.8. Any gift made by one Party to the other shall be deemed an absolute gift unless the Parties expressly agree otherwise in writing.

3.9. The terms set out in this Section 3 shall be subject to the provisions of clause 4.2.c below.

4. BANK ACCOUNTS

4.1. Where either Party holds a separate bank or building society account in their sole name, the funds in such account remain the exclusive property of the account holder.

4.2. In the event that the Parties open and maintain an account in their joint names (the "Joint Account"):

4.2.a. all funds in the Joint Account and any interest credited to it shall belong to the Parties in equal shares, irrespective of the contributions of each Party towards the balance of, or withdrawals from, the account;

4.2.b. each Party may draw money from the Joint Account, but any single withdrawal or payment from the account exceeding £________ shall be expressly agreed in advance; and

4.2.c. any asset or property purchased with funds from the Joint Account shall automatically be deemed to be jointly owned by the Parties in equal beneficial shares.

5. DEBTS AND CREDIT AGREEMENTS

5.1. Each Party shall be solely liable for all current and future debts incurred in their sole name.

5.2. All credit or finance agreements entered into by either Party in their sole name shall remain the sole responsibility of that Party and shall be repaid by them.

5.3. Any debt incurred jointly by the Parties, or in respect of which both Parties are liable, shall be discharged by the Parties in equal shares unless they expressly agree otherwise in writing.

6. LIVING EXPENSES

6.1. "Living Expenses" shall mean:

________

6.2. Living Expenses shall be paid for by the Parties as follows:

6.2.a. the First Party shall pay ________% of the Living Expenses;

6.2.b. the Second Party shall pay ________% of the Living Expenses.

6.3. The payments made by each Party towards Living Expenses shall not affect any legal or beneficial ownership of any property jointly owned by the Parties, nor create any beneficial interest in any property solely owned by the other Party.

7. CHILDREN

7.1. Nothing in this deed shall affect, restrict or determine the rights of any child of either or both Parties, nor the obligations of either Party towards any such child.

7.2. No provision of this deed shall fetter the jurisdiction of the court to make orders for the benefit of any child under the Children Act 1989, Schedule 1 to that Act, or the Child Support Act 1991.

8. TERMINATION

8.1. This deed shall terminate upon the first to occur of the following:

8.1.a. the death of either Party;

8.1.b. the marriage of the Parties to each other, or the formation of a civil partnership between them;

8.1.c. the Parties entering into a deed of termination or variation of this deed;

8.1.d. the Parties having lived apart for a continuous period of ________ and one Party serving written notice on the other that this deed shall terminate.

8.2. Upon termination of this deed:

8.2.a. the Parties shall cease using the Joint Account and divide the sums remaining in that account equally between them;

8.2.b. the Parties shall pay and settle all outstanding Living Expenses in the manner agreed in Section 6 above;

8.2.c. all jointly owned property shall be divided between the Parties in accordance with their respective beneficial interests;

8.2.d. each Party shall indemnify the other against all losses, costs, claims and liabilities incurred as a result of that Party's failure to pay any amount owed in connection with this deed.

8.3. Termination of this deed shall not affect any rights or liabilities which have accrued prior to termination.

9. INDEPENDENT LEGAL ADVICE AND VARIATION

9.1. Each Party confirms that they have received independent legal advice as to the terms and effect of this deed, as evidenced by the Certificates of Advice annexed to this deed.

9.2. The Parties agree to review this deed upon the occurrence of any material change in their circumstances, including the birth or adoption of a child, and in any event at intervals of not more than ________.

9.3. No variation of this deed shall be effective unless it is in writing, executed as a deed and signed by both Parties.

10. ENTIRE AGREEMENT

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11. THIRD PARTY RIGHTS

A person who is not a party to this deed shall have no rights under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any term of this deed.

12. GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION

This deed and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with it or its subject matter shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of England and Wales. The Parties irrevocably agree that the courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with this deed.

13. SEVERABILITY

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SIGNED AND DELIVERED AS A DEED BY THE PARTIES:

SIGNED AS A DEED BY ________:

DATED:

___________________

SIGNATURE:

___________________

________

In the presence of:

NAME OF WITNESS:

_________________

SIGNATURE:

___________________

ADDRESS OF WITNESS:

__________________

OCCUPATION OF WITNESS:

__________________

SIGNED AS A DEED BY ________:

DATED:

___________________

SIGNATURE:

___________________

________

In the presence of:

NAME OF WITNESS:

_________________

SIGNATURE:

___________________

ADDRESS OF WITNESS:

__________________

OCCUPATION OF WITNESS:

__________________

CERTIFICATE OF ADVICE - FIRST PARTY

I, ________ of ________ certify as follows:

I am a qualified solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales.

Before ________ entered into the deed to which this certificate is annexed, I provided to ________ independent legal advice as to the following:

a) the effect of the agreement on their rights and entitlements;

b) the advantages and disadvantages of entering into the agreement.

I am satisfied that the said Party entered into this deed of their own free will and with a full appreciation of its implications.

SIGNED:

__________________________

NAME OF SOLICITOR:

__________________________

FIRM:

__________________________

DATED:

__________________________

CERTIFICATE OF ADVICE - SECOND PARTY

I, ________ of ________ certify as follows:

I am a qualified solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales.

Before ________ entered into the deed to which this certificate is annexed, I provided to ________ independent legal advice as to the following:

a) the effect of the agreement on their rights and entitlements;

b) the advantages and disadvantages of entering into the agreement.

I am satisfied that the said Party entered into this deed of their own free will and with a full appreciation of its implications.

SIGNED:

__________________________

NAME OF SOLICITOR:

__________________________

FIRM:

__________________________

DATED:

__________________________

SCHEDULE 1

The First Party's property and personal assets are listed below:

________

SCHEDULE 2

The Second Party's property and personal assets are listed below:

________