Matrimonial Home and Cohabitation Agreement

[Help1145]

I am reading conflicting information. It indicates that the matrimonial home CANNOT be part of a cohabitation agreement even if the property was pre-owned by one of the parties. Help required - thank you.

[Rioe]

What sources are you getting the conflicting information from?

As I understand things, the matrimonial home is always shared equally, no matter who owned it before marriage or whatever cohab arrangements the couple made, which is extremely unfair in some situations. Although I believe that if you can prove bad faith for the marriage, it might be escapable.

[Jeff]

The concept of matrimonial home only applies to married couples - not cohabiting ones.

Even a marriage contract can deal with ownership of a matrimonial home. There are certain rights to do with a matrimonial home that can't be dealt with in a marriage contract, such as possession (the right to stay in the home), and alienation (the right to sell or mortgage the home).

[FightingForFamily]

I assume you mean that the common law parties eventually marry and had a cohabitation agreement in place that dealt with the home as an asset.

-The people who are willing to make cohabitation agreements are also the people most likely to follow one if things should come to an end with minimal involvement from a judge.

-The laws regarding matrimonial home only apply to married couples because they fall under the divorce act.

-The cohabitation agreement usually indicates if it continues into marriage or not.

-If there is a disagreement about whether the cohabitation agreement stands, or the divorce act's matrimonial laws apply instead, a judge would have to decide based on the agreement and the circumstances at the time.

-If the cohabitation agreement is deemed "unconscionable" or very unfair to one of the parties given the current circumstances parts of it may be overturned.

-However for the most part, domestic contracts are not easy to break.

[Help1145]

Thank you - we were married.

[Help1145]

Thank you.