家庭伴侣问题和协议

Today’s society has become more fluid regarding relationships. 许多情侣选择不结婚. 这些夫妇住在一起，就像他们结婚了一样, but they just have not taken the steps to legally get married. 这种安排产生了许多问题, since these individuals do not have the same rights as married couples. Experienced family law 和 divorce attorneys here in Guilford County deal with these types of situations fairly often 和 our attorneys at 伍德拉夫家庭律师事务所 can provide assistance regarding these issues. 

更详细地说, Domestic Partner Agreements are agreements between two parties who are not married, but generally live together in an arrangement similar to marriage. 他们共享财产和开支. 他们可能共同拥有房地产. 他们可能会有孩子, or one may adopt a child 和 involve the other party in the parenting. Basically, they behave as if they are married, without the legal label of being married. 

As mentioned above individuals in a domestic partnership do not have the same rights regarding their relationship that they would if they were married. 北卡罗来纳州是一个公平分配州, meaning that it is presumed that all assets 和 liabilities acquired during the marriage will be split equally between the spouses in the event of a divorce. However, if you are not married, that same presumption does not 应用. 

例如, Megan Marshall 和 Trevor Leady (hypothetical names) of High Point, 北卡罗来纳已经交往10年了, 我们在一起生活了8年. They have had two children as a result of their relationship. Megan makes significantly more each year than Trevor, who went back to school in an effort to change his career. The home that they have been living in for most of this relationship was purchased by Trevor during the relationship 和 is in his name only. He has a large mortgage outst和ing on the property.  

如果他们分开了, Trevor would not be entitled to any portion of the income that Megan has earned throughout their long-term relationship. Trevor also would be solely liable for the home mortgage. 如果他们结婚了, Trevor would have the right to half of the income that Megan earned during the course of the marriage. 如果他们结婚了, Megan may also have been liable on the home mortgage, since both parties are liable for debts that are incurred during the marriage. 

Children: North Carolina is quite advanced in this area 和 a domestic partner may have custody rights if the parent (or adoptive) parent of the child has actually allowed the domestic partner to parent the child in question. This is one instance where the rights of a married couple 和 the rights of a couple in a domestic partnership are similar, 虽然不完全一样. 

如你所见, a couple in a domestic partnership does not have the same rights as a couple in a marriage. Along with the legal status of marriage, comes legal rights 和 liabilities on both sides. To work around this distinction between the two types of relationships, an agreement can be written to protect the assets 和 liabilities of the domestic partnership in the event of a split. An agreement can also be written at the time of the split covering the issues.

An experienced family law 和 divorce attorney can assist you in drafting such an agreement. Having an attorney at your side ensures that the agreement protects your interests in the event of a split. Contact us today to set up an initial consultation regarding these matters, or any of the many family legal services that we provide.