Joint tenancy agreement - can she chuck him out?

[Fran44]

Hi

Am posting on behalf of my sister. She recently discovered her partner was having,at best, an emotional affair. They have an 8 month old baby and he left.

They rent and have a joint tenancy agreement. He is being a prick of the highest order - emotionally abusing her, calling her stupid, blaming her for the breakdown of the relationship etc etc. His job, and obsession with it, meant he was practically an absent parent before they split. Now he wants to see the baby whenever his work permits, despite the fact he doesn't know how to care for her. He insisted he wanted to learn and my sister, wanting to do right by their daughter, agreed to teach him. However he is becoming increasingly repugnant towards my sister. nothing physical but trying to undermine her, intimidate her.

My question is, as his name is currently on the tenancy, can she throw him out if he gets really nasty? She has contacted the landlord, who has agreed to take his name off, once the housing benefit assessment is through and she knows whether she can afford to stay there. I should add that she is going to speak to a solicitor next week as one minute he says he will financially contribute and the next (when he gets angry) threatens no or little assistance.

There's so much more I could say but, right now, we need to know if he has the right to stay in the house during contact.

Thank you

Are they married?

From CAB:

Housing

Tenants

As a tenant, your rights will depend largely on your tenancy status. If you are not sure what this is, in England and Wales see Renting from a private landlord or Renting from a social housing landlord.

Living together

If you are the unmarried partner of a tenant, whether in private or social housing accommodation, you will usually have no rights to stay in the accommodation if the tenant asks you to leave. It is therefore advisable for partners who are living together to be joint tenants, as this gives them equal rights and responsibilities. Many social housing landlords will require partners who live together to take on a tenancy as joint tenants. It is possible to convert existing sole tenancies to joint tenancies if the sole tenant and the landlord agree.

However, as an unmarried partner, you can get short-term rights to stay if you apply to court. A court can also transfer a tenancy, whether it is a sole or joint tenancy.

You may also have different rights if your partner has been violent towards you.

If your partner has been violent towards you, see Domestic violence.

If you are an unmarried partner who is not a tenant and need to stay in the home, you should consult an experienced adviser, for example, a family law solicitor. A Citizens Advice Bureau will also be able to give details of local solicitors. To search for details of your nearest CAB, including those that can give advice by CAB

If a sole tenant dies, a surviving partner may have the right to continue living in the home. If you are in this situation, you should seek legal advice.

Marriage

Both married partners have the right to live in the matrimonial home. It does not matter in whose name the tenancy agreement was made. This applies unless a court has ordered otherwise, for example, in the course of separation or divorce proceedings.

If you and your ex-partner both agree on who should stay in the home, you can ask the landlord to transfer the tenancy into the name of the partner who is staying. If both names are on the tenancy, you can ask for one of the names to be taken off.

If you can't agree on who should stay and you are divorcing, the long-term right to your tenancy can be decided during divorce proceedings. The court can transfer the tenancy to your name, even if your partner is the sole tenant, or you and your partner were joint tenants. However, if you are not separating legally, for example, divorcing, the court will only agree to transfer a tenancy if it decides it is in the best interests of your children.

If you want to apply to transfer a tenancy, you should do this at the same time that you apply for a divorce. If you don't do this, it may not be possible for the tenancy to be transferred at a later date.

Thank you. they are not married.