Cohabitants do not have the same rights to make property claims as married couples or civil partners. Instead, disputes between cohabitants regarding their interests in a property are determined in accordance with the law of trusts. The 'common law' wife or husband does not exist in law, and claims by cohabitants are very limited in comparison with spouses or civil partners. In some circumstances it may be possible to make a claim on behalf of a child. There are two main ways in which a cohabitant may have an interest in a property: -as a joint owner, or - where the property is in the sole ownership of the other cohabitant, under a trust, whether expressly stated or otherwise In some circumstances a cohabitant who has a potential interest in a property may make an application to the court under legislation called the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA 1996) if the legal owner of the property does not recognise their interest.