British Vision Issue 31 同居者的权益

No ring, no vows¹. But no rights? Couples who live together without getting married can soon be entitled to a share of the wealth if they split up or if one partner dies. The Law Commission has published new proposals aimed at making the law fairer for cohabiting partners especially if they've lived together for a certain period or had a child. DS reports.

' and all the time I have I will share with you.'

A commitment to stay together, traditionally marriage has had a special status in British law and society, but less and less of us is choosing to exchange vows .So is the law out of touch with the way we're living our lives? Two million couples now live together without tying the knot and that's set to double in the next 20 years. But what happens when things go wrong? Most people cohabiting wrongly assumed that they have common-law rights, their property and assets will get divided as if they were legally man and wife. In fact people who live together don't have any rights and that can be painful.

The contrast couldn't be clearer. Last week, divorcee Melissa Miller³, married for 2.5 years, got 5 million pounds of her ex-husband's financial fortune. But unmarried Shirley Mcgauley who lived with her partner for 10 years got nothing when he died. The courts have established the principle that wives like Melissa Miller should be rewarded for their contribution to a marriage. But the situation is very different for unmarried couples who split. When Shirley Mcgauley's partner Martin died, she suddenly found she was entitled to nothing, not even a share of the house even though she had helped / pay the mortgage. The insurance money paid on his death ,the money in their bank account and Martin's pension were all inherited by his parents.

"It's, it's the most awful thing to go through 'coz you have to deal with your grief, which you can't because you've got so many other worries. Money worries, financial worries, how you are gonna pay bills . And who is gonna listen to you? Who is gonna help you? Nobody, nobody wants to know because the law states that it's eh, next of kin², which leaves people like me basically nowhere."

Heterosexual couples now have less legal rights than gay couples who can choose to register their civil partnerships⁴. And so the Law Commission is asking whether it's time for change. For example, should those who split be able to claim a lump sum or maintenance. And how long should they have to live together before being eligible⁵. In other countries, such as Scotland, there is no minimum of time period and cohabitating couples enjoy similar rights to married couples. But there is a more fundamental question. Once a couple decides to commit to marriage by buying the rings and ordering the dress, it's generally accepted that they are taking on certain responsibilities and in return ,the state gives them certain rights But if a couple chooses not to bother and simply to live together, why should they expect the same benefits?

We don't feel that should be used as a means for denying basic justice for those who have not been together within a marriage relationship , but who at the end of that relationship, are otherwise going to suffer that injustice⁶ .

The Church of England was initially⁷ against any changes, but now says it accepts the proposals as there is still a distinction between cohabitees and spouses⁸. It could take years before any changes happen. Until then the official advice to those living together is to put property in joint⁹ names and to make a will.


1.split up :separate, divide; be separated, be divided; separated, divided, parted

2.tie the knot:get married, be wed结婚

3.common-law:law which is determined¹⁰ by judges, method of lawmaking that began in England; unwritten law, law that is based on past legal decisions 不成文法; 习惯法

4.lump sum:total sum, inclusive total, comprehensive sum 一次付款额; 总金额

1 vows   

誓言( vow的名词复数 )； 郑重宣布，许愿

参考例句：

• Matrimonial vows are to show the faithfulness of the new couple. 婚誓体现了新婚夫妇对婚姻的忠诚。
• The nun took strait vows. 那位修女立下严格的誓愿。

2 kin   

n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的

参考例句：

• He comes of good kin.他出身好。
• She has gone to live with her husband's kin.她住到丈夫的亲戚家里去了。

3 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

4 partnerships   

n.伙伴关系( partnership的名词复数 )；合伙人身份；合作关系

参考例句：

• Partnerships suffer another major disadvantage: decision-making is shared. 合伙企业的另一主要缺点是决定要由大家来作。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• It involved selling off limited partnerships. 它涉及到售出有限的合伙权。 来自辞典例句

5 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

6 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

7 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

8 spouses   

n.配偶，夫或妻( spouse的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Jobs are available for spouses on campus and in the community. 校园里和社区里有配偶可做的工作。 来自辞典例句
• An astonishing number of spouses-most particularly in the upper-income brackets-have no close notion of their husbands'paychecks. 相当大一部分妇女——特别在高收入阶层——并不很了解他们丈夫的薪金。 来自辞典例句

9 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

10 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。