Key Takeaways:
- Common-law marriage means that, after living together for many years without officially marrying, the law considers the partners married. It’s a kind of de facto marriage or marriage by default.
- The majority of states do not practice common-law marriages.
- You can’t create a common-law marriage in Oregon, but it will honor common-law marriages from other states if the couple meets the requirements of that state.
- If you have kids, the court considers child custody, child support, visitation, and other concerns the same way, whether you are married or not.
- Unless you have a common-law marriage from another state, unmarried couples aren’t protected by the same laws when it comes to dividing property.
A lot goes into a relationship between two people. Navigating interpersonal affairs often resembles a high-wire act. At a basic level, however, marriage is relatively simple. You either are, or you aren’t, right?
People toss the term common-law marriage around quite a bit, so it begs the question: Does Oregon have common-law marriage?
What Is Common-Law Marriage?
In a broad sense, the term common-law marriage means that, after living together for many years without officially marrying, the law considers partners married. Practically, how it works is usually more complicated than that, but those are the basics.
It’s a kind of de facto marriage or marriage by default. A couple shares bank accounts, often has kids, and generally view each other as spouses.
How common-law marriage works also varies from place to place. In reality, it’s only a factor in a limited number of locations and a handful of states.
Does Oregon Have Common-Law Marriage?
The short answer is no, Oregon doesn’t have common-law marriage. With so many misconceptions about the concept, Oregon keeps it simple. You can’t create a common-law marriage here.
However, the state does acknowledge those from other places. According to the Oregon State Bar:
“[I]f a couple is from a state that acknowledges common-law marriages, and the couple meets the requirements of common-law marriage of that state, then the state of Oregon will recognize the marriage of that state as valid in Oregon.”
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Rights of Unmarried Partners
Just because Oregon doesn’t have common-law marriage doesn’t mean you’re without rights in long-term relationships.
Cohabitation without marriage happens more frequently now than ever. Couples live together, mix finances, buy homes, have children, and for all intents and purposes, act married.
But unless you have a common-law marriage from another state, unmarried couples aren’t protected by the same laws when it comes to dividing property in the event of a split.
In general, each partner generally retains their own property. Except in cases where you intentionally commingle assets. The law views jointly owned property as belonging equally to both parties.
You do have the option to ask the court to divide assets, though it’s a complicated, roundabout legal process.
In most cases, you should reserve this for major holdings, like houses or cars. It’s probably well worth it just to buy new furniture.
However, if your name isn’t on something, things become tricky. When your name doesn’t appear on, say, the title of a car, you need to show that the intent was to share.
Spousal support is one element that doesn’t play a part in long-term relationships. Again, unless there’s a pre-existing common-law marriage, this isn’t an option. You neither pay nor receive alimony in the case of a break-up.
This is also an evolving field, and Oregon has an ever-growing body of domestic partnership law. A common interpretation of this concept holds that all property is in play when determining an equitable split. While they can’t divide retirement plans, some judges compensate in other ways. We’re seeing more cases like this regularly, and it’s becoming more like divorce than ever.
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Do You Have Custody Rights if You Were Never Officially Married?
The rights and obligations of parents don’t change due to marital status. Wed or not, that doesn’t impact the matter.
If you have kids, the court considers child custody, child support, visitation, and other concerns the same way, regardless of whether the parents are married.
Biological and adoptive parents retain the same parental rights whether there’s a ring on that finger, a common-law marriage, a domestic partnership, or no relationship at all.
You pursue custody and visitation through identical legal channels. Depending on the situation, you may either pay or receive child support. All of the usual things that play a role in divorce and custody battles also apply to unmarried parents.
The short answer to the question of whether Oregon has common-law marriage is no: no, it doesn’t. Long-term relationships fall into a unique category, and breakups play out differently than divorce. Different laws apply, but you’re not entirely on your own when one goes bad. You face additional pitfalls, but there are ways to deal.
Related Reading: What Are A Father’s Rights? (Whether Married or Unmarried)