Durham-Chapel Hill-Raleigh Board Certified Domestic Partnership Lawyer
Serving the Triangle Area
If you are an unmarried couple, either heterosexual or gay and lesbian, North Carolina's equitable distribution laws do not apply to you. However, there are contractual ways to provide unmarried couples the same property rights that married couples have.
As one of only five practicing attorneys in Durham County to be Board Certified by the North Carolina Board of Legal Specialization as a family law specialist, and having more than 10 years of experience serving clients in Durham-Chapel Hill, Alyscia G. Ellis is fully qualified to help all types of families protect their financial interests.
Without a domestic partnership or cohabitation agreement, the supporting partner has no obligation to support a dependent partner if the relationship breaks up.
Second-Parent Adoptions
A second-parent adoption occurs when a partner in a same-sex relationship legally adopts the other partner's biological or adopted child. We have successfully completed second-parent adoptions in Durham and Orange County with the parties' consent.
Did You Know?
- North Carolina has a law barring unmarried couples from living together, but that law is no longer enforced.
- Second-parent adoption is just like traditional adoption in which you have same parental rights and responsibilities, including inheritance rights, duties of support, social security benefits, etc.
For more information about domestic partnerships or second-parent adoptions: Call Attorney Alyscia G. Ellis at 919-688-9400 or fill out the contact form on this site.
