4. Explain how cohabitation could create legal problems for couples: residence, money, property, insurance, health care, decision-making, and children. (8 points)
Cohabitating can be both beneficial and disadvantageous. Some couples may believe that cohabitation is a good way to test the waters before marriage. Some couples may even begin cohabitating out of convenience or financial benefit. However, when a couple lives together there can be a number of obstacles that can come up. Couples who live together may choose to share finances and can go to a bank and get a joint account, but if the relationship dissolves, one of the partners can go to that bank and withdraw as much money out of that account without the others consent. When it …show more content…
Cohabitating couples have to get a power of attorney for healthcare in the event that a partner cannot in good mind make decisions on their healthcare. Growing up my family had a family friend who had lived with his girlfriend for like 10 or 15 years and she became gravely ill and passed away very suddenly. He did not have a power of attorney and was not included in any of the medical decisions made for his life partner. Her family was able to legally make all the medical decisions and decided to bury her in another state (where she was from) and he was powerless to stop them. When unmarried couples live together and have a child or children it is an important to distinguish to the state that the child lives with both parents because most states will seek to obtain child support from the unmarried father. Also, in some states it is important to state in writing that should the mother die the child or children should go to the father. This is very important in same sex cohabitating couples, where one parent even possibly both parents are not the biological parents. Though now that same sex marriage is legal I wonder if that is still an issue. All these things can get very messy when cohabitating couples break up. It is important when making the
Cohabitating can be both beneficial and disadvantageous. Some couples may believe that cohabitation is a good way to test the waters before marriage. Some couples may even begin cohabitating out of convenience or financial benefit. However, when a couple lives together there can be a number of obstacles that can come up. Couples who live together may choose to share finances and can go to a bank and get a joint account, but if the relationship dissolves, one of the partners can go to that bank and withdraw as much money out of that account without the others consent. When it …show more content…
Cohabitating couples have to get a power of attorney for healthcare in the event that a partner cannot in good mind make decisions on their healthcare. Growing up my family had a family friend who had lived with his girlfriend for like 10 or 15 years and she became gravely ill and passed away very suddenly. He did not have a power of attorney and was not included in any of the medical decisions made for his life partner. Her family was able to legally make all the medical decisions and decided to bury her in another state (where she was from) and he was powerless to stop them. When unmarried couples live together and have a child or children it is an important to distinguish to the state that the child lives with both parents because most states will seek to obtain child support from the unmarried father. Also, in some states it is important to state in writing that should the mother die the child or children should go to the father. This is very important in same sex cohabitating couples, where one parent even possibly both parents are not the biological parents. Though now that same sex marriage is legal I wonder if that is still an issue. All these things can get very messy when cohabitating couples break up. It is important when making the