The law surrounding cohabitees & trusts of land continues to evolve, says Greg Williams
There are over four million unmarried couples cohabiting in England and Wales. Many of those couples undoubtedly believe in the fallacy of the “common law marriage”. This myth survives because it is erroneously referred to in everyday speech, perhaps perpetuated by the media and application forms for insurance, loans and mortgages.
Decline in marriage
Marriage rates have been in decline for over 30 years. Even those couples who do marry (one can think of a topical Royal example) tend to live together for at least a few years before they tie the knot.
On 9 November 2011, the Supreme Court gave its decision in the landmark case of Kernott v Jones [2011] UKSC 53, [2012] AC 776.
That case provided an opportunity for the Court to revisit the House of Lords’ decision in Stack v Dowden [2007] UKHL 17, [2007] 2 All ER 929.
The outcome of Kernott was widely discussed at the time. It was not lost on the legal profession that the Supreme Court took the trouble to clarify
