Law Office Of Teri Plagmann, PC 

A common law domestic partnership is easy to get into. There are no up front costs. You simply move in together, commingle your finances and plan your futures together. However, you and your partner may end up embroiled in a legal dispute at a later time.  Without a written document that outlines your living situation and financial arrangements, your domestic partnership may be vague, with one or both of you being unclear of the financial arrangements during the period that your partnership exists, or in the event it is dissolved.   You may later face significant legal fees in order to sort out the dissolution of your domestic partnership. Without registering your domestic partnership, in the event that one of you predeceases the other, the surviving partner will not receive any of the statutory benefits currently provided for under Oregon law.

Yes. Anyone who intends to enter into a domestic partnership arrangement should consider having a formal agreement prepared by an attorney. We understand that some people may be find it too emotional or too business-like to negotiate such an agreement.  However, a domestic partnership agreement will clarify the expectations and financial obligations for each of you during the relationship. In the event that your domestic partnership ends, your agreement will outline what will happen and how your property will be divided.  A domestic partnership agreement can help to avoid the emotional toll of dealing with difficult financial issues that may arise later, so that you and your partner can spend your time during your relationship focusing on your life together. 

A registered domestic partnership is created by Oregon law, therefore only state benefits are provided.  There are no federal benefits (such as Social Security, Medicaid, or the ability to file a joint federal tax return) provided at this time.  However, the list of benefits provided by the State of Oregon is extensive.  The following is a partial list of benefits:

• Automatic right to make health care decisions for your partner, including the withdrawal of life support;
• Automatic right to visit your partner in the hospital;
• The right to sue for the wrongful death of your partner;
• The right to continue to live in the residence of your deceased partner for one year after death;
• The right to receive as support from the estate of your deceased partner the title to real or personal property or periodic support payments for a maximum period of two years after your partner's death;
• The right to take an elective share of one-fourth of the net of your deceased partner's estate, regardless of what provisions are made for you in your partner's Will;
• The right to inherit the net estate if your partner dies without a Will, similarly as you would if you and your partner were married; 
• The right to private visits or to share a room with your partner in a long-term care facility
• The right to file joint Oregon tax returns (not federal);
• An automatic authorized driver on your partner's rental car;
• The right to automotive personal injury protection benefits for your partner and to uninsured motorist insurance coverage;
• The right to obtain life insurance on your partner;
• The ability to protect your partner's home in bankruptcy;
• Automatic assumed parentage for children;
• Testimonial privilege;
• The right to receive personal effects from your deceased partner's body;
• The automatic right of survivorship for jointly owned real property;
• The right to worker's compensation benefits if your partner is disabled or killed while on the job;
• The right to receive your deceased partner's unemployment benefits;
• The right to receive protection through emergency court orders in the event of dissolution of your domestic partnership.

Additional information about registered domestic partnerships can be found at the Basic Rights of Oregon website at http://www.basicrights.org/?page_id=101

As a domestic partner, you may be liable for the medical expenses of your partner.  Also, the incomes of both of you may be combined to disqualify one or both of you from certain government programs. If you transfer property to a domestic partner during a domestic partnership, or upon dissolution, there may be tax consequences as a result of  the transfer.  Additionally, in the event you and your domestic partner decide to end your relationship, your partnership will need to be legally dissolved, which can be expensive if you and your spouse have not entered into a written agreement outlining your financial agreements in the event of a dissolution. Finally, there are no federal benefits provided in a domestic partnership, ie. Social Security, Medicaid or federal housing, and you cannot file a joint federal tax return. 

Not unless your first relationship has been formally ended. You cannot register a domestic partnership if either you or your partner have another domestic partner or spouse living at the time of registration.  Additionally, you cannot register if you are first cousins or nearer in kin, when either partner is incapable of making or consenting to a civil contract, or when consent is obtained by force or fraud.