UK: Mother must give up half of her house to the lover who left 17 years ago

Article here. Excerpt:

'A homeowner was yesterday ordered to give her ex-lover half the value of her £245,000 house, 17 years after they split and despite him never making a mortgage payment on it.

Patricia Jones, 55, was told that despite the time lapse her former boyfriend was entitled to 50 per cent of the three-bedroom home. The Court of Appeal branded the case ‘a cautionary tale’ for unmarried couples who buy property together without making formal legal agreements.

Had the couple been married and split up, their assets would have been divided in a divorce settlement overseen by the courts. Three senior judges heard that Miss Jones paid the deposit on the house when she bought it with her then-boyfriend, ice cream salesman Leonard Kernott, in 1985.

She also paid the mortgage for the eight years that they lived together, although Mr Kernott gave her £100 a week towards ‘expenses’.
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Appeal Court judge Lord Justice Wall said: ‘This is a cautionary tale, which all unmarried couples who are contemplating the purchase of a residential property as their home, and all solicitors who advise them, should study.’
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The Appeal Court said Miss Jones was not entitled to any of his house, as it was bought after they split up, but ruled that he was entitled to half of their former home - a share worth more than £109,000 once the mortgage has been paid.

Sir Nicholas, sitting with two other judges, said the couple bought the Thundersley house in both their names and had agreed then that it belonged to both of them.'