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Can I Claim Money After Death Of My Partner Even If We Were Not Married?

Posted by admin on November 15, 2016

Cohabitating couples, or those involved in a common law marriage, may face a few challenges trying to claim money after their partner died. Fortunately, Texas is one of a few states that does honor common law marriage. An Austin family attorney should be able to help in these cases.
For partners who were in these states but now reside in Texas, common law marriage is also honored in:

  • Colorado
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Montana
  • New Hampshire
  • South Carolina
  • Utah

A few states will honor common law marriage as long as the partners were together before these years:

  • Florida (1968)
  • Georgia (1997)
  • Indiana (1958)
  • Ohio (1991)
  • Pennsylvania (2005)

However, in order for an Austin family attorney to help someone collect funds from the deceased party who didn’t have a will or testament, the best case scenario would be if both parties’ names were on a lease. Or, in the case of business or real estate property, the partners filed as joint tenants with the right of survivorship. By default, the deceased tenant’s half of the property would be passed on to the surviving partner. If the real estate property was already commonly known as a joint-owned property, this could avoid tension with the deceased party’s children.

If there is no legal paperwork from a real estate or estate planning attorney to prove the surviving partner should be entitled to any money or real estate property that could lead to additional income. Contact Jackson Law Firm for legal advice on how to potentially settle these legal issues.

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