Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue ... Oh, and something in writing too. Welcome to the world of prenuptial agreements. Usually the domain of tacky gold diggers like Anna Nicole Smith, now there is increasing interest in them in the UK.

These agreements are mainly used by one person who comes into the relationship with significantly more assets than the other - as in boy meets girl, girl has a three-bedroom apartment.

In the UK, prenuptial agreements are generally not enforced in divorce courts. Those fuddy duddy old judges don't like having their hands tied when it comes to making settlements in divorce cases.

Living in sin

About 40 per cent of marriages end in divorce, perhaps one reason why more of us are choosing to cohabit. Around 70 per cent of couples now live together before getting married, compared to just 5 per cent in the mid 1960s.

The fact is that people are delaying marriage till later in life. Instead, they're going down the somewhat more sensible route of living together before marriage. Why is it sensible? Most people will agree that the only time you really get to see someone's true colours is after sharing a roof with them for an extended period.

'De facto' is a rather ugly term that describes two people in a relationship living under the one roof. Most couples I know that live together agree that living together is a big form of commitment, and is basically the same as marriage, except for the expensive wedding, and the engagement presents.

A cohabitation agreement

It's possible for a couple that are living together to draw up a legal agreement to cover what might happen to their joint possessions in the event of a break-up. Both parties would need their solicitors to advise them and the agreement should only cover significant material possessions such as property or joint investments and be unambiguously worded. It is worth remembering that agreements like this have still to be fully tested in UK courts so if in doubt, either make sure your own assets are kept entirely separate - or get married!

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The price of love