Cohabitation barristers in Liverpool.
Counsel for unmarried couples in [object Object] and across Merseyside, covering the home, money for children and arrangements for the children after separation.
Cohabitation Barristers for Liverpool clients
There is no such thing as a common law marriage in England and Wales. When an unmarried couple separates, however long they lived together, neither has an automatic right to maintenance, a share of the other's pension or a fair division of assets. The law that applies is property and trust law, supplemented by claims made for the benefit of children.
For Liverpool couples that usually means three strands of work. A claim about the home under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996, heard in the County Court at Liverpool, at the Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts in Derby Square. A claim for financial provision for children under Schedule 1 of the Children Act 1989, and any dispute about where the children live, both heard in the Family Court at Liverpool, based at the Liverpool Civil and Family Court on Vernon Street.
Clerk&Counsel introduces independent barristers who handle both the property and the family side, so the strands are run together rather than by different advisers pulling in different directions. Our counsel appear regularly in Liverpool and at the Wirral, Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens, Warrington and Chester.
Many clients instruct counsel directly under the Public Access scheme. Counsel can advise on where you stand, draft letters and applications, negotiate and appear at hearings, with every fee agreed in writing first.
Areas of work in Liverpool
Claims over the family home
TOLATA claims to establish or defend a share in a home held in one or both names, including equitable accounting for mortgage payments after separation.
Schedule 1 claims for children
Applications for housing, lump sums and top up maintenance for a child, particularly where the paying parent has significant income or assets.
Child arrangements
Live with and spend time with orders, specific issue and prohibited steps applications, including relocation within the UK and abroad.
Cohabitation agreements
Advice on drafting, reviewing and relying on cohabitation agreements and declarations of trust, and on challenges to them.
Occupation and non molestation orders
Urgent applications under the Family Law Act 1996 to regulate who lives in the home or to protect a partner or children from abuse.
Businesses and investments
Disputes over businesses run together, jointly owned rental properties and money transferred between partners during the relationship.
Death of a cohabitant
Claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 where a partner dies without providing for the survivor.
Mediation and settlement
Advice before and during mediation, round table meetings and drafting of binding settlement agreements and consent orders.
Where these cases are heard
Civil property claims in Liverpool are issued in the County Court at Liverpool, at the Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts in Derby Square. Larger or more complex cases may be issued in the Business and Property Courts in Liverpool, for larger property and chancery claims.
Family matters, including children and financial remedy applications, are dealt with by the Family Court at Liverpool, based at the Liverpool Civil and Family Court on Vernon Street. Hearings are also listed at the Wirral, Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens, Warrington and Chester, and many short directions hearings now take place by video.
Appeals from district judges go to a circuit judge, and from circuit judges to the High Court or Court of Appeal. Counsel can advise on whether an appeal is realistic and on the strict time limits that apply.
What drives this work in Liverpool
Merseyside property disputes frequently involve terraced homes bought decades ago, family homes on the Wirral held in one name only, and small portfolios of student lets around the universities. Where one partner has lived in and maintained a property for years without being on the title, the question of a beneficial interest is often the whole case.
Cohabiting couples are the fastest growing family type in Merseyside. Many assume that years together or children in common give them the same rights as a spouse, and discover at separation that they do not. Early advice on the evidence you hold, and on the realistic outcome, is the best protection.
Where children are involved, the Schedule 1 claim can be as valuable as the property claim, providing housing for the child's minority and a contribution to costs. Counsel will look at both together so that nothing is given away in one set of proceedings that matters in the other.
What instructing counsel costs
An initial conference and written advice on a cohabitation separation usually costs between £750 and £2,000 plus VAT depending on complexity.
Court attendance generally costs at least £1,000 in most cases. Short family hearings and first appointments are commonly between £1,000 and £1,800, while contested final hearings are quoted per day once the evidence is settled.
It is free to send us an enquiry. If you go on to instruct a barrister through us, a Clerk&Counsel service fee of up to £150, depending on urgency, applies and is shown separately from the barrister's own professional fee before you decide.
If you are separating from a partner in Liverpool and need to know where you stand on the home, the children or money, send us a summary. We will match you with suitable counsel and fixed fee quotes.
Clerk&Counsel is an intermediary and clerking service. We do not provide legal advice or legal representation. The barristers we place are independent practitioners regulated by the Bar Standards Board and are responsible for the legal services they provide.
Every barrister we place is regulated by the Bar Standards Board. Clerk&Counsel is a clerking agency and does not provide legal services itself.
Cohabitation Barristers in Liverpool, common questions
Do cohabiting couples have the same rights as married couples?
No. There is no common law marriage in England and Wales. Claims depend on property law, trusts and, where there are children, Schedule 1 of the Children Act 1989.
Which Liverpool court deals with cohabitation disputes?
Property claims are usually heard in the County Court at Liverpool, at the Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts in Derby Square. Children and Schedule 1 claims are heard in the Family Court at Liverpool, based at the Liverpool Civil and Family Court on Vernon Street.
Can I get maintenance from my former partner?
Not for yourself. You may be able to claim maintenance, housing and lump sums for your children under Schedule 1, and child maintenance through the Child Maintenance Service.
Is a cohabitation agreement binding?
A properly drafted agreement is generally treated as a contract and a declaration of trust over property is usually conclusive. Counsel can advise on whether yours will stand up.
Can I instruct a barrister without a solicitor?
Yes, under Public Access where the case is suitable. Counsel will tell you if a solicitor is needed.
- Cohabitation Barristers, main guide
- TOLATA Barristers in Liverpool
- Civil Partnership Barristers in Liverpool
- Cohabitation Barristers in Leeds
- Cohabitation Barristers in Manchester
- Cohabitation Barristers in Newcastle
- Cohabitation Barristers in Sheffield
- Cohabitation Barristers in York
- Cohabitation Barristers in Hull
- Cohabitation Barristers in Preston