Сборник текстов для перевода. Борисова Л.А. - 6 стр.

 • In most states, each married spouse's earnings are owned by the two of
   you, and if the marriage breaks up – regardless of who's at fault – you
   each generally get half of everything you've accumulated. By contrast, if
   you are unmarried, your property is co-owned only if you have an agree-
   ment to that effect; likewise for debts and obligations. Divorcing couples
   are also entitled to demand alimony if the marriage doesn't last, with-
   out the need for any explicit contract providing for post-separation support.

 • Every marriage requires a formal ceremony, and every marital separation
   requires some kind of formal court action, and quite often the help of a
   lawyer. Unmarried couples can break up informally, on their own terms.

 • Absent a legal marriage, a couple needs to sign several agreements to
   create even a partial framework of protection in the event of death, and
   certain tax benefits are forever denied to unmarried couples. If you are
   married, however, the surviving spouse generally inherits all the property
   if the partner dies without a will. At death, a bequest from one spouse to
   another is tax free, regardless of its size.

 • Transfers of property upon dissolution of the relationship are also tax
   free for legally married couples, but not for unmarrieds.

 • Marriage can bestow a bevy of important benefits, including military or
   Social Security benefits, health care and nursing home coverage. Mar-
   riage may also qualify you for unpaid leave from your job under the
   Family Leave Act. But watch out — a married person's income could
   disqualify a spouse from receiving Social Security, welfare or medical
   benefits she'd receive if she was unmarried.

 • A legal marriage is the only reliable method of providing a foreign
   lover with the privileges of immigration to this country, when he doesn't
   qualify under work or other provisions of the Immigration Act.

       If you are ever allowed to make this difficult decision, first decide
whether you fall into one of the got-to-marry or better-not-marry situations.
Raising kids, courting a foreign lover or facing a serious illness, for example,
generally favors a marriage (unless it disqualifies you for Medicaid), whereas
getting saddled with your partner's debts or losing Social Security benefits
probably favors a no vote.
       If you don't fall into either extreme, take a close look at the marital
property rules for your particular state, evaluate the benefits given your personal
situation and get a good sense of what being married would do for you finan-
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