Cohabitation

Moving in with someone is a tumultuous event for many people both from a personal perspective but also in a legal sense. As a new cohabitee it is important that you get an understanding of the rules that are applicable to the cohabitee relationship in order to avoid unpleasant surprises.

The legislation that specifically regulates cohabitee relationships can be found in the Cohabitees Act. The Cohabitees Act contains rules that regulate what happens if the cohabitee relationship ends e.g. due to one of the parties passing away or because the cohabitees choose to end the relationship by separating.

As a cohabitee you are not entitled to any inheritance, however cohabitees have a right to division of joint property in accordance with the Cohabitees Act which means that a cohabitee has a right to equal division of the dwelling and household goods obtained for joint use. However, it is possible through the drafting of certain legal documents to waive and supplement the rules of the Cohabitees Act in order to achieve a situation that is as satisfactory as possible for your specific situation. We are happy to assist you with information, advice and/or the drafting of documents to safeguard your legal and financial protection.

Cohabitee agreement

The Cohabitees Act includes the regulation that governs how division of joint property between cohabitees shall be conducted. By drafting a personal agreement, a “cohabitee agreement”, the cohabitees can together waive these rules.

In a written cohabitee agreement you can jointly decide how a division of the dwelling and household goods (cohabitee property) obtained for joint use shall be carried out if the cohabitee relationship ends (death, separation). There is a possibility of partly or entirely waiving the rules of the Cohabitees Act regarding division of joint property. It is common to draft a cohabitee agreement in cases where one cohabitee have purchased the entirety of the joint dwelling or provided the majority of the purchase sum.

Last will and testament

Cohabitees are not entitled to inherit each other. If one cohabitee passes away it is the deceased cohabitee’s heirs who inherit the deceased’s estate. In order for you as cohabitees to have the right to inherit each other you need to write a will.

It is important to remember that a child always have a direct right to inherit their parents if they are not married to each other. However, by drafting a will the children’s right may be limited to only encompass the reserved share of the estate which is half of the disposable portion of the estate that they would otherwise be entitled to by law.

The law stipulates some formal requirements regarding the wording of a will and it may be wise to seek the help of a lawyer to ensure its legality.

Monitoring the will

Our document monitoring service entails us monitoring your will to ensure that it is unearthed the day it is needed. It is a digital service where we, via the Swedish Tax Agency, are informed when a person whose document we are monitoring has passed away. This way you do not risk your will arriving too late or not at all.

Promissory note

A promissory note is a written document with a commitment to pay a certain amount of money. It functions as a receipt for those who have lent someone money and is drafted as proof of a loan. In the promissory note terms and conditions for the loan are established. It is common for promissory notes to be drafted in situations where cohabitees have contributed different amounts when purchasing, for example, a property.