Living together : a legal guide for unmarried couples

All the law cohabiting couples need to know

Laws that protect married couples--on property ownership, divorce, inheritance rights, and more--don't apply to unmarried couples. To define and protect your relationship--and your assets--you need to take specific legal steps and use the right documents.

Whether you're just starting out or are one of the growing number of older couples who choose to live together, this revised edition has the information you need. It covers all the big issues facing unmarried couples living together, including:

Money and Property
Clarify how you'll share money and other assets.

Estate Planning
Leave your assets to whomever you wish, including children form a prior marriage.

Breaking Up
Divide property and share child custody fairly.

Children
Protect your kids by confirming that you are their legal parents.

The House
If you buy a house together, spell out ownership shares in writing.

Medical Decisions
Make important medical decisions for each other if necessary.

• 1 Living Together: The Legal Companion for Unmarried Couples p. 1
• 2 The Legal State of Living Together p. 7
• Sex and the Law p. 8
• Domestic Partners p. 10
• Common Law Marriage p. 13
• Living Together Contracts p. 17
• Why You Need to Put Your Living Together Agreement in Writing p. 25
• What Happens to Your Written Living Together Agreement If You Get Married? p. 28
• Special Issues for Seniors p. 32
• 3 Living Together Agreements: Why and How They Work p. 35
• Ten Tips for Writing a Living Together Agreement p. 39
• Property Agreements p. 43
• Agreement to Share Ownership of a Joint Purchase p. 57
• Agreement Covering Joint Projects p. 65
• Agreement Covering Homemaker Services p. 67
• Agreement for Artists, Writers, and Inventors p. 71
• Agreement for People in School p. 75
• Agreement to Protect Person Who Moves a Long Distance or Gives Up a job p. 79
• 4 Debt, Credit, Taxes, and More: Practical Aspects of Living Together p. 81
• Debt and Credit p. 83
• How (and Why) to Check Your Credit Report p. 86
• Buying and Investing Together p. 90
• Discrimination p. 92
• Sharing Your Last Name p. 97
• Income Taxes p. 99
• Social Security p. 103
• Retirement Plans p. 105
• Public Benefits p. 108
• Insurance p. 109
• Liability for Medical Care of a Partner p. 114
• Making Medical and Financial Decisions for Your Partner p. 114
• Wrongful Death and Loss of Consortium Lawsuits p. 119
• 5 Renting and Sharing a Home p. 121
• Discrimination on the Basis of Marital Status p. 122
• Leases and Rental Agreements p. 125
• Moving In Together p. 126
• Dealing With Objections When Moving Into the Rental Home of One Partner p. 132
• Getting Your Security Deposit Back p. 138
• 6 Buying a House Together p. 141
• May Sellers Discriminate Against Unmarried Buyers? p. 144
• How to Find and Work With a Real Estate Agent p. 145
• Househunting Online p. 148
• Home Financing and Mortgages p. 148
• Proceeding With Your Purchase: Offers, Inspections, Escrow, and Closing p. 158
• Taking Title to Your New Home p. 161
• Contracts for Couples Owning a Home Together p. 170
• Contracts for Equal Ownership of a House p. 172
• Contract for Unequal Ownership of a House p. 187
• Agreement for One Person to Move Into the Other's House and Become an Immediate Co-Owner p. 192
• Agreement for One Person to Move Into the Other's House and Become a Co-Owner Gradually p. 199
• 7 Starting a Family p. 205
• Having a Child: Legal Obligations of Unmarried Parents p. 206
• Naming the Baby and Getting a Birth Certificate p. 207
• Naming the Father: Paternity p. 208
• Legitimacy of Children Born to Unmarried Parents p. 212
• Adopting a Child p. 217
• Public and Private Benefits for a Child of Unmarried Parents p. 221
• Inheritance Rights of a Child of Unmarried Parents p. 222
• 8 You and Your Ex-Spouse and Children From a Prior Relationship p. 223
• Getting a Divorce While Living With Someone Else p. 225
• Living Together and Impact on Custody of Children From a Prior Marriage p. 231
• Visitation With Children From a Prior Marriage p. 238
• Child Support for Children From a Prior Marriage p. 239
• The Effect of Living Together on Alimony and Child Support From a Prior Marriage p. 241
• 9 Wills and Estate Planning p. 245
• What Happens If You Don't Do Any Estate Planning? p. 246
• Typical Estate Plans p. 247
• Figuring Out What You Own: Taking Inventory p. 249
• An Introduction to Wills p. 252
• Avoiding Probate p. 258
• Estate and Gift Taxes p. 264
• Balancing the Needs of Your Partner and Your Children p. 268
• Funerals and Other Final Arrangements p. 272
• 10 Moving On-When Unmarried Couples Separate p. 275
• Rules of the Unmarried Dissolution p. 278
• The Process of Separation p. 280
• Ten Steps to Resolving Your Conflicts p. 289
• Mediation, Arbitration, and Other Ways to Resolve Disputes p. 293
• Lawyers and Lawsuits: Going to Court p. 301
• Solutions for Typical Property Division Problems p. 303
• Tenants: Who Gets the Rental? p. 304
• Homeowners: Dividing the House p. 305
• Putting It All Together: Preparing a Settlement Agreement p. 316
• Children: Custody, Visitation, and Support p. 316
• 11 Lawyers and Legal Research p. 329
• When to Hire a Lawyer p. 331
• How to Find a Good Lawyer p. 332
• Appendix: How to Use the Downloadable Forms on the Nolo Website p. 339
• Editing RTFs p. 340
• List of Forms Available on the Nolo Website p. 341
• Index p. 343