The Liberal Democrats have passed a motion at their conference that makes it an official party policy to bolster the law surrounding finance issues for cohabiting couples.
The party made it part of their official policy to implement “without delay” proposals “giving cohabiting couples fair and reasonable redress upon relationship breakdown and upon intestacy, based upon the proposals made in the Law Commission’s 2007 and 2011 reports”.
Included in its motions are plans to ensure that “upon the death without a will of one partner in a cohabiting couple, the other should benefit from his or her estate provided that certain qualifying conditions were met”.
At the moment, there is only limited protection within family law for couples who choose to live together without getting married. The Lib Dems have stated that this lack of protection, particularly where finances are concerned, can “have an adverse effect on the individuals and any children”.
Julian Huppert, a Lib Dem MP, commented on the movement: “Millions of people in the UK live together but do not choose to get married, whether or not they have children. Many of them believe that these relationships are protected as ‘de facto marriage’, but this term has no legal meaning, and they have very little protection.
“Liberal Democrats think it is important to support such long-term partners, especially if they do have children, and will press for this to be recognised in law, unless the couple choose not to have such protection.”