*AtMP especially thanks these authors and organizations for their partnership and support.

Also see these related resource pages:
Domestic Partner Benefits Information
Unmarried Parenting Rights & Responsibilities
Common Law Marriage Fact Sheet
Cohabitation Books & Links
LGBT Books & Links
General Books & Links

AtMP has partnered with Powell's Books.  If you click a book title on this page and purchase the book from Powell's, a portion of your purchase will support AtMP!  In fact, any Powell's purchase by searching or linking from this page will support our work! 

Legal and Financial Books

* Financial Intimacy, by Jacquette Timmons

Timmons never coaxes the reader toward one particular financial arrangement. Instead she helps the reader find answers so that she and her partner (if applicable) can start to make their own decisions on what money arrangements work best for them. Timmons includes specific financial concerns for single women living alone, cohabitating women, married women, women in same sex relationships, divorced women and stay at home partners. 

* The Laws of Love, by Attorney Donna C. Kline

* Living Together: A Legal Guide for Unmarried Couples, by Attorneys Toni Ihara, Ralph Warner, and Frederick Hertz (2008).
This user-friendly book is the best legal guide we've seen on the subject. It contains chapters on renting and buying a home, parenting issues, wills and estate planning, and sample living together agreements for a variety of situations. This 10th edition of the book comes with a computer disk containing forms you can use and modify for your situation. We use our copy all the time.

You can support AtMP by buying this book from us online.

* A Legal Guide for Lesbian and Gay Couples, by Attorneys Hayden Curry, Denis Clifford, and Robin Leonard (2007).
This book is an in-depth, accessible guide to protecting yourself as a same-sex couple. It includes information on medical emergencies, financial matters, parenting, wills, buying a home, and sample contracts for your relationship.

You can support AtMP by buying this book from us online.

* Unmarried to Each Other: The Essential Guide to Living Together as an Unmarried Couple, by Dorian Solot and Marshall Miller (2002).
Written by AtMP's founders, this book includes a chapter on legal and financial issues, providing an easy-to-understand overview of the most important issues. It's a good way to find out the basics of what unmarried partners need to take action on, and which legal protections are not available to unmarried partners.

You can support AtMP by buying this book from us online.

* Legal Guide to Living Together, by Muses Legal Products.
For people who are ready to sign legal agreements to define their partnership, this CD can be a very affordable alternative to hiring an attorney. Lawyers around the country created 152 documents specifically for unmarried couples, with unique documents for each U.S. state where laws differ. The documents can be modified before printing. To see a list of documents, click here

You can support AtMP by buying this CD from us online.

Eternity Commitment: The 21st Century Alternative to Marriage, by Todd I. Stephenson.
This book offers an alternative structure for combining lives without combining finances. Read an AtMP member’s review here.

Cohabitation: An Alternative Form of Family Living, by Zheng Wu (2000).
Primarily an academic analysis of demographic and sociological trends in Canada, this book contains a short overview of Canadian cohabitors' legal rights and responsibilities (pages 161-4).

Financial Self-Defense for Unmarried Couples: How to Gain Financial Protection Denied by Law, by Elkin, Larry, CPA (1995), originally titled First Comes Love, Then Comes Money.
This book is not overwhelmingly supportive of couples who don't marry, but does offer financial advice.

Financial Fitness for Living Together, by Elizabeth Lewin (1996).
This book includes suggestions and worksheets for unmarried partners on integrating your assets, managing your finances, and preparing for the future.  

* Legal Affairs: Essential Advice for Same-Sex Couples, by Frederick Hertz (1998).
This book, by the same author as A Legal Guide for Lesbian and Gay Couples, discusses how to write agreements in "Happy Times" to protect oneself and each other during "Hard Times."

New Families, New Finances: Money Skills for Today's Nontraditional Families, by Emily Card and Christie Watts Kelly (1998).
Each section in this book includes special strategies for single parent families, blended families, cohabiting different-sex couples, cohabiting same-sex couples, and other "nontraditional" family forms.

To read our full review of this book, check out our September 1999 Update

Unmarried Parents' Rights: (And Responsibilities), by Jacqueline Stanley, attorney at law (2005).
This legal guide is about the rights of unmarried parents who are no longer in a relationship. It includes samples of forms and summaries of the laws in all 50 states.

Eight Books on Relationship Contracts

This annotated bibliograhy by James Park lists books he's found helpful on the subject of writing agreements with one's partner(s) about one's relationship.

Cohabitation (Living Together) Agreements Links

Relationships Made Easy By Marital And Cohabitation Agreements
A short article by a Colorado attorney about writing agreements.

Living Together and Cohabitation Agreements
This page from the Equality in Marriage Institute discusses what you should include in your cohabitation agreement, and suggestions for how to have those challenging conversations.

Romantic-Love Contract
A sample contract you can print out and use as a living together agreement.

Articles by Jared Laskin
Legal resources for unmarried couples (same gender or different-gender), with a focus on California and the attorney who created the site.

Immigration Links

Check out legal resources about immigration, plus AtMP's policy statement on immigration.

Civil Marriage Links

Marriage Requirements, Procedures, and Ceremonies FAQ
A great resource from Nolo.com, publishers of Living Together and A Legal Guide for Lesbian and Gay Couples. Answers to questions about blood tests, marriage certificates vs. marriage licenses, and who can perform a marriage ceremony.

General Legal and Financial Links

JP Boyd's British Columbia Familiy Law Resource A legal site with information for unmarried same-sex and different-sex couples, and common-law couples, in British Columbia, Canada.

Nolo's Living Together Encyclopedia
This page, brought to you by the folks who wrote the excellent books Living Together and A Legal Guide For Lesbian and Gay Couples, includes answers to frequently asked questions about unmarried couples' property rights, parenting issues, medical decisions, common law marriage, and premarital agreements.
American Bar Association: Finding Legal Help
A helpful section on how to find a lawyer (including how to find free legal help, and how to solve your problem without a lawyer), what questions to ask lawyers, and referral lists.

GayLawNet
A great site with information about and links to a wide variety of legal issues affecting same-sex couples.

Partnership for Caring
You can download free copies of your state's healthcare proxy (medical power of attorney) forms and living wills from this site. These are important if you want if you want an unmarried partner, or someone other than your legal next-of-kin (usually your parents or adult children), to be able to make medical decisions for you if you were unable to do so. The site requires a quick registration to access the free downloads.

Relationship LLC
One theory on how to gain rights without marriage is to form "limited liability companies" (LLCs). They can be created by any number of people and any combination of genders. Each LLC can make its own legal agreements. We don't know anyone who's done it, though. If you have, please let us know!

Do you have legal or financial books, links, or other resources you'd recommend? Let us know so we can add them to this collection!