1. Why should I have any legal documentation of my relationship?
2. What legal documents are important for me?
3. Where will my documents be recognized?
4. What if I am considering a Vermont Civil Union?
1. Why should I have any legal documentation of my relationship? How would you feel if your partner was in an accident and you weren't permitted to visit him or her in the hospital? What if you suddenly passed away and your family members claimed rights to the house you and your partner had just purchased together? As long as the standard marriage laws won't protect you or your relationship, you should take all of the legal steps that are available to you to create that protection for yourself.
2. What legal documents are important for me? While every situation is unique, some of the most basic documents are: -a Pre-Domestic Relationship Agreement which spells out your rights and obligations with regard to property, support, estate rights, debts, children both during the relationship and in the event of a dissolution; -a Last Will and Testament which ensures that the requests in your Agreement with regard to your estate are enforceable in the event of your death;
|
 -a Correctly drafted Deed which, while no substitute for a will, can ensure that property automatically passes to the surviving partner; -a Health Care Power of Attorney or Health Care Proxy which allows you to dictate whom you would like to make decisions for you, including health care decisions, especially important if you should become incapacitated; -a Financial Power of Attorney which allows you to dictate who can make financial decisions for you -a Living Will which allow you to decide under what circumstances you would want to discontinue treatment and stop artificial life support; - a Hospital Visitation Authority ensures that you and your partner are able to visit each other during a hospital stay
3. Where will my documents be recognized?
Domestic Partnership Agreements, Deeds, Last Wills and Testaments and Powers of Attorney are recognized in every state. The Domestic Partnership Agreement is treated like any contract if it is appropriately drafted and executed. Living Wills and Hospital Visitation Authorization will also be recognized in every state, although you may have to carry them with you, and these documents can be contested by other relatives. However, in hospitalization situations, your wishes are far more likely to be recognized if you have prepared the proper documents.
4. What if I am considering a Vermont Civil Union, or some other type of partnership in another state? Although there is not a strict residency requirement to register for a civil union in Vermont, Vermont Civil Unions require a year-long residence in the state for a dissolution. In addition to carrying legal obligations similar to marriage on dissolution, failure to dissolve a CU may stand in the way of entering into another type of domestic partnership in another state. Because of the difficulties involved in dissolution, it is imperative that couples have domestic partnership agreements before entering into Civil Unions or same-sex marriages in other states so that the terms of the dissolution are defined.
|
