New 'breakup law' could give your ex rights to your assets even if you weren't married

New laws being considered in the UK could mean that unmarried partners who separate could request a portion of their ex's assets.

While people of course get married for romantic reasons, because they want to spend the rest of their life with the person they love, getting married does also come with some financial and legal benefits that unmarried partners do not currently have.

But under new proposals being considered by the UK government, unmarried couples could also have additional rights relating to partners' assets.

At present, partners who live together but aren't married do not enjoy the same legal protections as married partners. For example, you do not have any automatic right to property held in your partner's name even if you contributed to the household.

In the event that a couple separates this can lead to messy separations as people figure out who gets to keep what, with these situations currently dealt with under trust law.

It is hoped that by changing this it can make things easier for cohabiting partners who are not married, including people trying to escape an abusive relationship.

But how would it work?

The rules will apply to partners who are not married (Getty Stock)

To meet the requirements of the new law, you have to show that you have been in a committed romantic relationship and have lived together for at least three years prior to separation. If you have a child together then this becomes living together for any amount of time.

Under the proposed rules, the courts can become involved if distributing the assets according to who owns what would not result in both parties being able to have their basic needs met.

In this situation, the courts would decide how to distribute the assets to ensure that both parties have this, though this would only cover basic needs and luxuries or comforts would not be a part of this.

Factors that might influence this may be if there is a child involved, and if so which partner is the main caregiver, and then making sure they have the resources they need to look after the child.

Other factors the courts could consider might include disability, particularly if this affects someone's ability to work, as well as the partners' ability to earn money, any savings or investments they might have, as well as how long the relationship had lasted.

Under the rules courts can get involved under certain circumstances (Getty Stock)

These rules would automatically apply to any couple who meets the minimum requirements and they can only opt out of them 'if they mutually agree to do so', however the courts would become involved if one of the partners applies to the court within two years of the separation.

If this happens then under the proposals the courts would be encouraged to prioritise a 'clean break' between the partners, however if they cannot do this then they could use the same mechanisms as divorce courts.

For example, this might include orders sharing pensions, lump sums, or property adjustment, though maintenance orders would only be made under 'exceptional circumstances', for example if one partner has a disability or severe health issues.

Nonetheless there are still some differences from divorce under these rules.

For example, in the case of an unmarried couple the default assumption is that each person would keep what they legally own, as opposed to fifty fifty. The court would only step in if one party would not be able to afford their basic needs.