How to Review a Cohabitation Agreement: a Clause-by-Clause Checklist

How do you review a cohabitation agreement before signing? Review a cohabitation agreement by checking, in order: that it records what each partner owned before moving in together, how property and expenses during the relationship are shared, what happens on separation or death, and that it stays on the firmer ground of property and money rather than trying to regulate the relationship itself. A cohabitation agreement is used by unmarried partners living together to set out their financial understanding, and the review is about making it clear, fair and as enforceable as the law allows. Before the checklist, you need to know where these agreements stand, because that affects how much weight the document carries. This article is general guidance, not legal advice. Cohabitation and live-in arrangements engage contract law, personal law and public policy, which differ by jurisdiction, so have a qualified family lawyer review any agreement before you rely on it. ## Are cohabitation agreements enforceable in India? Living together is not illegal in India. The Supreme Court has repeatedly held that consensual live-in relationships between adults are lawful, and a long-standing, stable live-in relationship can attract protection, including maintenance for a woman under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, which recognises a relationship "in the nature of marriage". The enforceability of a written cohabitation agreement as a contract is less settled. One view is that an agreement between consenting adults for a lawful purpose is a valid contract under the Indian Contract Act, 1872, and several High Courts have treated agreements about property and finances between partners as valid. The other view is that such agreements may face a public-policy challenge, especially if they touch the intimate side of the relationship or rest only on past cohabitation. The practical takeaway: an agreement limited to property, expenses and separation terms stands on firmer ground than one that tries to regulate the relationship itself. A maintenance claim under the Domestic Violence Act does not depend on having an agreement. <!-- [VERIFY: latest High Court positions on enforceability of property-focused cohabitation agreements] --> Last verified October 2026. ## The clause-by-clause review checklist ### 1. Property brought into the relationship

• Does each partner list the property, savings and debts they had before moving in together?
• Is it clear that this stays each partner's separate property unless they agree otherwise? ### 2. Property and money during the relationship
• How is property bought together owned and shared?
• How are everyday expenses, rent or EMI, and bills split?
• How are joint accounts and joint purchases treated? ### 3. Contributions that are not cash
• Does the agreement recognise non-financial contributions, such as one partner running the home or supporting the other's career? ### 4. Separation
• What happens to jointly owned property and joint accounts if the partners separate?
• Is there any agreed support, and for how long?
• Is the split clear enough to apply without another fight? ### 5. Children
• Does it try to pre-decide child custody or maintenance? Courts decide these on the child's best interests at the time, so such terms usually do not bind. ### 6. Death and inheritance
• Does it acknowledge that a live-in partner does not automatically inherit the other's estate without a will?
• Have both partners made wills if they want to provide for each other? This is a common and important gap. ### 7. Form and advice
• Did each partner have independent legal advice and sign freely?
• Is the agreement in writing, signed, witnessed and, ideally, notarised as evidence of consent?
• Does it stay focused on property and money rather than the relationship's intimate terms? ## Red flags that should stop a signing - Terms that regulate the relationship itself, which are the most likely to face a public-policy challenge.
• No record of pre-relationship property, so later it is unclear what each partner brought in.
• A grossly one-sided split, especially where one partner gave up a career or income.
• Reliance on past cohabitation as the only basis for a promise.
• Pre-deciding children's custody or support.
• No wills, leaving a surviving partner with no inheritance right.
• No independent advice or signs of pressure on one partner. ## How to run the review in practice 1. Separate the enforceable core (property, expenses, separation terms) from anything that tries to govern the relationship, and keep the focus on the core.

2. Compare what each partner brought in and check it is recorded clearly.
3. Test the separation terms: could they be applied without another dispute?
4. Strike or flag any term pre-deciding children's issues.
5. Make sure both partners have wills if they intend to provide for each other, and that each had independent advice. ## A note on jurisdiction How live-in relationships and cohabitation agreements are treated varies widely. In India the protection comes mainly through the Domestic Violence Act and case law rather than a dedicated statute, and the enforceability of the written agreement as a contract is unsettled. Some jurisdictions give cohabitation agreements clear statutory recognition; others do not. Where partners have ties to more than one country, the governing law matters. Confirm the position with a family lawyer in the relevant jurisdiction before relying on the agreement. Last verified October 2026. ## Where a contract workspace helps This checklist is enough to review one cohabitation agreement carefully by hand. For a family-law practice the repeated load is heavier: separating the enforceable property terms from the risky ones, holding each partner's contributions against the agreed split, and remembering the wills that should sit alongside the agreement. Drafting, reviewing, tracking and governing agreements like this can live in one AI workspace tuned to how your practice works, instead of being spread across files and folders. Adira is designed around that one-place idea.