marriage - tennants in common

[EddieKidd]

I wondered does marriage override any cohabition agreement or declaration of trust that may be written up? Or do those documents still stand? or even override the unequal shares when you choose to be tenants in common

Thank you for your answers

[Barmaid]

If you have a particular problem in mind, I suggest you take legal advice. I should point out that (apart from my own) I have no experience of divorce law.

However, the DoT which is drawn up prior to marriage is not, per se, revoked in any way by marriage. However, on divorce, the parties have statutory rights under the Matrimonial Proceedings Act. For instance, you may have signed a DoT years before marriage, giving each party 50/50 on separation. If marriage then occurs and children come along, the court WILL take the DoT into account when dealing with ancillary relief, but ultimately they will look at providing a home for the children and the main carer. What DoT's cannot take into account (unlike matrimonial law) is the changing circumstances of a relationship.