Sure, sure, we are lawyers so we recommend spending a lot of money on legal fees, right? Not at all! In fact, we are big proponents of self-help in law. However, with cohabitation agreements, the process of entering into them is as important as the actual content of the agreement.
So, if you don’t use a lawyer, a court can set aside your cohabitation agreement on the grounds that your partner did not understand what he or she was signing, or did not understand what his or her legal rights were, or was pressured into signing the contract. A lawyer will protect you against these things – a lawyer will explain what the agreement means, what the person’s family law legal rights are, and inquire into the circumstances surrounding the desire to enter into the contract. This is known as independent legal advice.
