Common Law Relationships

There is no set time limit. It can be complicated and depends on the issues you are dealing with, such as property rights, spousal support, or other benefits. 

Property: Common-law partners do not have an automatic right to share property when they separate. Only married couples or registered domestic partners have this right. You can clarify your rights to shared property by creating a cohabitation agreement. The rules about dividing property and pensions are complicated, and it’s best to see a lawyer.

Spousal support: You have some rights for spousal support after living together for 2 years or having a child together. Nova Scotia Parenting and Support Act gives you some rights. 

Medical and company benefits: Companies’ employee policies or insurance companies may say what qualifies a common-law spouse for employee or medical benefits. 

Taxes, immigration status, and Canada Pension: The government of Canada says that a common-law couple is 2 people who have lived together in a marriage-like relationship for at least 1 year. This affects your income tax, immigration status, and ability to get Canada Pension. 

You should see a lawyer for a clearer understanding of your situation. 

You can register as a common-law couple with Vital Statistics at Service Nova Scotia. You will be considered registered domestic partners and will have many of the same rights as married couples. This includes things such as pension benefits and the division of assets if you separate or one of you dies without a will. 

Call Vital Statistics at 902-424-4381 or 1-877-848-2578 (toll-free) or visit beta.novascotia.ca/register-your-domestic-partnership.

Talk to a lawyer for information on rights and benefits.

Yes. All common-law partners should have a cohabitation agreement. 

Agreements make sure both partners are thinking the same way about all major financial matters. If the relationship ends, you cannot assume that you both will:

• feel the same way about these matters 
• keep verbal promises made during the relationship. 

Common-law partners don’t have the same property rights as married couples or couples in registered domestic partnerships. Agreeing to share property in a cohabitation agreement protects common-law partners.

A cohabitation agreement is very important if one partner:

• has more assets or debts than the other
• owns a home, but the other does not
• has a special type of property they want to protect, such as a family cottage
• has or will have a very different income 
• plans to stay home full-time or part-time with children
• has children from an earlier relationship. 

You can make a cohabitation agreement when you begin living together or at any time during the relationship. 

You can write your own agreement or get a lawyer to help. The agreement should be in writing, dated and signed by both partners and witnessed by an adult (19 years old or older) who watched you sign it. 

Get legal advice from separate lawyers before you sign any agreement. This is called “independent legal advice.”

Independent legal advice is important because:

• your lawyer can help you understand what you are agreeing to
• your agreement is less likely to be challenged in court later
• a court is more likely to order you and your partner to do what you agreed to. 

You can change your cohabitation agreement if your partner agrees. The new agreement should be:

• in writing
• dated and signed by both partners 
• signed by an adult (19 years or older) who watched you both sign the new agreement. 

Both partners must agree to the changes to the agreement. You will likely have to follow the original agreement if you don’t both fully agree to the new one. You should both get your own legal advice before you sign any agreement.

A court may change or not accept a cohabitation agreement if:

• it is very unfair to one partner, and that partner did not get independent legal advice before signing 
• one partner was dishonest about their assets, debts, income or other circumstances. 

You should speak to a lawyer if your cohabitation agreement is unfair.

Yes. Wills are especially important for common-law partners because you do not have the same rights as married couples. Both partners must have a will to ensure property goes to the other partner. 

If a person in a common-law relationship in Nova Scotia dies without a valid will, their property will go to family members, not their common-law partner. Nova Scotia’s law about wills recognizes married spouses and registered domestic partners but not common-law partners.

Other things you can do to make sure your partner inherits are:

• create a trust
• own property in both names 
• name your partner as beneficiary on RRSPs, life insurance and other benefits. 

Lawyers, accountants and estate planners can help with this kind of planning.

Read more about what happens if a person dies without a will. 

Read more about making a will.

If you are a common-law couple and your partner dies without a will, your partner’s family will be in line to inherit all their property. 

If you own property with your common-law partner, you will have rights to the property you co-owned. 

If you did not own property with your common-law partner, you may have a claim against the estate if you can show that you made valuable contributions to the property during your relationship.

If you had children from another relationship and your partner acted as a step-parent, your children may also have a claim against the estate. 

Talk with a lawyer if you think that you or your children may have a claim against your partner’s estate. 

If you have a registered domestic partnership and your spouse dies without a will, you have the same rights as a married person. 

Go here for more information about making a will.

The relationship ends when you stop living together. You do not have to go through a divorce to end a common-law relationship. 

Some rights and responsibilities may continue after the relationship ends. 

You and your common-law partner may agree on parenting arrangements, dividing property and paying debts. You may already have separation terms in a cohabitation agreement. 

If you have not agreed on separation terms, you can go to court and have a judge decide.

You must formally end your registered domestic partnership. You can do it in one of these ways:

• You can file a joint Statement of Termination with Vital Statistics.
• You can register a signed written separation agreement with the Supreme Court (Family Division) and then file proof of the registration with Vital Statistics. 
• You can file a sworn written statement (called an “affidavit”) with Vital Statistics with one or both spouses saying you have been separated for at least 1 year. 
• You can marry someone else. You must file a copy of the marriage certificate with Vital Statistics.

Both parents have joint responsibility for their children. You can write out your parenting arrangement in your separation agreement. If you cannot agree on important decisions, either one of you can apply to the Supreme Court (Family Division) for a court order to deal with parenting arrangements and financial support.

For more information, go to nsfamilylaw.ca.

Spousal support: If you have lived together for at least 2 years or have a child together, you may have responsibilities to provide financial support for each other. 

If the relationship ends, either partner can apply to the Supreme Court (Family Division) for a spousal support order. 

If you have a registered domestic partnership, you don’t have to have lived together for 2 years to apply for spousal support.

For more information on spousal support, go to nsfamilylaw.ca. 

Child support: All parents (birth, adoptive, step) must support their children. Nova Scotia law says this even if you are not married to each other or have never lived together. 

For more information, go to the nsfamilylaw.ca page on child support.

If you are applying for support for yourself or your children, consult a lawyer. 

You are not generally responsible for your spouse’s debts unless you co-sign for them. If you co-sign for loans with your spouse, you are each responsible for repaying the loans. If the debt is for something that is used for the family’s benefit, such as fuel or food, you and your spouse may be responsible.

Married spouses must share their assets equally, according to Nova Scotia law. However, this law does not apply to common-law couples unless they have a registered domestic partnership. 

Generally, if a common-law relationship ends, each person takes whatever property:

• is in their name
• they brought into the relationship
• they bought during the relationship
• or they are entitled to under the terms of their cohabitation agreement (if the couple made one). 

Any property you own together would be shared because you both own it.

If you made a cohabitation agreement, it should have terms that say what property rights each partner has upon separation. This is one reason why cohabitation agreements are beneficial for common-law couples. 

You and your partner can agree on how to divide property at any time before or after separation. You may agree on the following:

• each person keeping their own goods
• splitting things up equally 
• dividing property in some other way. 

Whether you have a cohabitation agreement or not, describing how you will divide property in a separation agreement is a good idea. Get independent legal advice (2 separate lawyers) before you both sign the agreement. This helps make sure it is fair to both partners. If you want to divide a private workplace pension, you usually need a written separation agreement or court order. 

If you disagree about dividing your property and debts, the common-law partner whose name is not on the assets can try to claim compensation. They must show how they helped increase the asset’s value and how the other person benefited from it. This is called an “unjust enrichment” claim. 

Unjust enrichment means it is unfair for one person to benefit from another person’s contributions. The person who helped increase an asset’s value but who is not the owner on paper should get some compensation for it. This assumes this partner wasn’t already compensated for their contributions, such as by living in a home without paying the mortgage, insurance or taxes. 

Contributions include things like: 

• money (down payments, mortgage payments, insurance, taxes, loans)
• unpaid or underpaid work (maintenance and general upkeep, asset improvements). 

A common-law partner can base their property division claim on an argument that the couple always planned to share whatever wealth they accumulated during the relationship, even if only one person’s name was on an asset. It could be based on things you said or wrote down about that plan during the relationship. The courts call this a “joint family venture.” 

Property division for common-law couples can be complicated. Talking with a lawyer for advice about your situation is best.

• ww.nsfamilylaw.ca - family law information on many topics, including common-law relationships, divorce, separation, parenting arrangements, spousal support and child support
• Contact the Legal Information Society of Nova Scotia to connect with a legal information counsellor and get free legal information
• Contact Nova Scotia Legal Aid for family law legal information and legal advice
• Contact a lawyer in private practice (a lawyer you would pay) who does family law
• Free and low-cost legal help in Nova Scotia.