Separation after long cohabitation: common issues

Elizabeth Darlington Barrister 1GC Family Law

In this article Elizabeth Darlington considers three keys issues which frequently arise when a couple have cohabited for a long time or they have been separated for a long time before the courts are asked to deal with their property and financial issues. These are: 1) constructive trust claims where one property is purchased in the sole name of one party including discussion of Curran v Collins; 2) purchases of a property in the couples joint names where there are unequal financial contributions one party for example paying a substantial deposit and whether this can be set aside on the grounds of undue influence. This is particularly topical in light of increased awareness of economic abuse and coercive control and increasing numbers of vulnerable litigants including the elderly; 3) occupation rent: there have been a number of significant decisions recently regarding occupation rent including Bailey v Dixon and Ali v Khatib which are necessary to consider where parties have been separated for a significant period of time and where one party has remained living in the former...

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