There is a growing trend of people trying to save money by using online resources to create their own cohabitation agreements. An agreement could, for example, say that you and your partner should separate: to save money, a spouse`s lawyer could prepare the agreement. The other spouse`s lawyer could then seek legal advice on that spouse. Before entering into a life pact, you and your spouse should sit down and make a list: no. There is no legal obligation for you to have a marriage contract if you plan to get married. (Or an agreement on cohabitation, if you plan to live with someone.) You may not have to sign one. A court may postpone an agreement on which you have been put under pressure. The big difference between marriage contracts and cohabitations is that people who sign a cohabitation contract are not married and may not be considering getting married, or at least not yet. They may or may not become unmarried spouses. It is therefore important to understand how the legal status of unmarried spouses differs from both the status of other unmarried couples and the status of married spouses before they even think about the idea of a cohabitation agreement. Cohabitation agreements should be considered a living document.

They need to be checked at regular intervals to keep them up to date and to ensure that they continue to do what they are supposed to do. The JP Boyd on Family Law Wikibook, organized by Courthouse Libraries BC, has detailed information on marriage contracts and cohabitation agreements, including the development of advice. LEGAL Aid BC`s Legal Enterprise Legal Status website contains detailed information and steps to be taken to amend the agreements. It also gives you a chance to agree on how things are shared while you are still in the relationship (and in good words with your partner). Typically, a marriage or cohabitation agreement talks about how property and debt are managed during the relationship. Any type of agreement also talks about how ownership and debt are shared when the couple disintegrates. Sometimes they also say whether the spouse`s help is paid when the relationship ends. Call to see if you can find a lawyer to help you write the agreement for fees you can afford. Many lawyers impose a fixed fee for writing agreements such as these. Marriages and unions are contracts. They make promises to each other.

Promises usually relate to what happens when the relationship ends. But they can also explain what will happen during the relationship if there is a problem. The main objective is to avoid future conflicts. Under British Columbian law, cohabitation agreements have the same power as marriage contracts (in fact, they are exactly the same, except for the different name). Cohabitation agreements can also be useful in defining rules on how parties will manage things during the relationship, although this type of cohabitation agreement is quite rare. If a cohabitation agreement is required to address these issues, the financial situation of the parties may not be relevant. It is time to conclude these agreements when people are on good terms. If you wait and the couple is not on good terms, the lawyers commit, and it can be expensive and can take years. You can write about these things in the agreement, but the court will not impose them if you dissolve. The only exception is that if you reach your agreement, it is because you have decided to separate, but you still live together in a house.

A cohabitation agreement can be reached between two people who are already living together or planning to live together. Again, you do not have to enter into a cohabitation agreement before or during the life together. There are many precedents for people who have entrusted their assets and debts to these online models, just to discover that they have no legal value, which has the effect of distributing their assets under the Family Act.