New Mexico 2023 Regular Session

New Mexico House Bill HB273 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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28	28	HOUSE BILL 273
29	29	56
30	30	TH LEGISLATURE
31	31	-
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33	33	STATE
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35	35	OF
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37	37	NEW
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39	39	MEXICO
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42	42	FIRST SESSION
43	43	,
44	44
45	45	2023
46	46	INTRODUCED BY
47	47	Charlotte Little and Meredith A. Dixon
48	48	AN ACT
49	49	RELATING TO PROPERTY; ENACTING THE UNIFORM COHABITANTS'
50	50	ECONOMIC REMEDIES ACT; PROVIDING A RIGHT OF ACTION TO
51	51	COHABITANTS FOR CONTRACTUAL AND EQUITABLE CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF
52	52	CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE COHABITANTS;
53	53	ESTABLISHING REQUIREMENTS OF A COHABITANTS' AGREEMENT;
54	54	PROVIDING A RIGHT TO THIRD PARTIES TO ENFORCE JUDGMENTS AGAINST
55	55	COHABITANTS; PROVIDING REMEDIES.
56	56	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
57	57	SECTION 1. [NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be
58	58	cited as the "Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act".
59	59	SECTION 2. [NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the
60	60	Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act:
61	61	A. "cohabitant" means each of two people not
62	62	married to each other who live together as a couple after each
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90	90	has reached the age of majority or been emancipated, but does
91	91	not include two persons who cannot lawfully marry because both
92	92	persons are relatives within a prohibited degree pursuant to
93	93	state law;
94	94	B. "cohabitants' agreement" means an agreement
95	95	between two people concerning contributions to the relationship
96	96	if these people are to become, are or were cohabitants and
97	97	includes a waiver of rights under the Uniform Cohabitants'
98	98	Economic Remedies Act;
99	99	C. "contributions to the relationship" means the
100	100	contributions of a cohabitant that benefit the other
101	101	cohabitant, both cohabitants or the cohabitants' relationship
102	102	in the form of efforts, activities, services or property and:
103	103	(1) includes cooking, cleaning, shopping,
104	104	household maintenance, conducting errands and other domestic
105	105	services for the benefit of the other cohabitant or the
106	106	cohabitants' relationship;
107	107	(2) includes otherwise caring for the other
108	108	cohabitant, a child in common or another family member of the
109	109	other cohabitant; and
110	110	(3) does not include sexual relations;
111	111	D. "property" means anything that may be the
112	112	subject of ownership, whether real or personal, tangible or
113	113	intangible, legal or equitable or any interest therein,
114	114	including responsibility for a debt;
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143	143	E. "record" means information:
144	144	(1) inscribed on a tangible medium; or
145	145	(2) stored in an electronic or other medium
146	146	and retrievable in perceivable form;
147	147	F. "state" means a state of the United States, the
148	148	District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin
149	149	Islands or any other territory or possession subject to the
150	150	jurisdiction of the United States; and
151	151	G. "termination of cohabitation" means the earliest
152	152	of:
153	153	(1) the death of a cohabitant;
154	154	(2) the date the cohabitants stop living
155	155	together as a couple; or
156	156	(3) the date of the cohabitants' marriage to
157	157	each other.
158	158	SECTION 3. [NEW MATERIAL] SCOPE.--The Uniform
159	159	Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act applies only to a
160	160	contractual claim or an equitable claim between cohabitants
161	161	concerning an interest, promise or obligation arising from
162	162	contributions to the relationship. The rights and remedies of
163	163	cohabitants under the Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies
164	164	Act are not exclusive.
165	165	SECTION 4. [NEW MATERIAL] RIGHT OF COHABITANT TO BRING
166	166	ACTION.--
167	167	A. A person who is or was a cohabitant may commence
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196	196	an action on a contractual claim or an equitable claim that
197	197	arises out of contributions to the relationship. The action is
198	198	not:
199	199	(1) barred because of a sexual relationship
200	200	between the cohabitants;
201	201	(2) subject to additional substantive or
202	202	procedural requirements because the parties to the action are
203	203	or were cohabitants or because of a sexual relationship between
204	204	the cohabitants; or
205	205	(3) extinguished by the marriage of the
206	206	cohabitants to each other.
207	207	B. The action may be commenced on behalf of a
208	208	deceased cohabitant's estate.
209	209	C. The action may be commenced against a deceased
210	210	cohabitant's estate and adjudicated pursuant to a law of this
211	211	state applicable to a claim against a decedent's estate.
212	212	SECTION 5. [NEW MATERIAL] GOVERNING LAW.--
213	213	A. Except as otherwise provided in the Uniform
214	214	Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act, a claim under the Uniform
215	215	Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act is governed by other laws of
216	216	this state, including this state's choice-of-law rules.
217	217	B. The validity, enforceability, interpretation and
218	218	construction of a cohabitants' agreement are determined by:
219	219	(1) the state law designated in the agreement
220	220	if the designation is valid under other state law; or
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249	249	(2) in the absence of a designation effective
250	250	under Paragraph (1) of this subsection, the law of this state,
251	251	including this state's choice-of-law rules.
252	252	SECTION 6. [NEW MATERIAL] COHABITANTS' AGREEMENT.--
253	253	A. A cohabitants' agreement may be oral, in a
254	254	record, express or implied-in-fact.
255	255	B. Contributions to the relationship are sufficient
256	256	consideration for a cohabitants' agreement.
257	257	C. A claim for breach of a cohabitants' agreement
258	258	accrues on breach and may be commenced, pursuant to Chapter 37,
259	259	Article 1 NMSA 1978, during cohabitation or after termination
260	260	of cohabitation.
261	261	D. A term in a cohabitants' agreement that
262	262	adversely affects a child's right to support is unenforceable.
263	263	E. A term in a cohabitants' agreement that requires
264	264	or limits the ability of a cohabitant to pursue a civil,
265	265	criminal or administrative remedy is voidable to the extent the
266	266	remedy is available because the cohabitant is a victim of
267	267	domestic abuse as defined pursuant to the Family Violence
268	268	Protection Act.
269	269	SECTION 7. [NEW MATERIAL] EQUITABLE RELIEF.--
270	270	A. Unless maintaining the action is inconsistent
271	271	with a valid cohabitants' agreement, a cohabitant may commence
272	272	an equitable action against the other cohabitant concerning
273	273	entitlement to property based on contributions to the
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302	302	relationship. The action is in addition to any remedy
303	303	otherwise available to the cohabitant pursuant to the Uniform
304	304	Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act or other state law or
305	305	federal law.
306	306	B. A cohabitant may commence an action provided
307	307	pursuant to the Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act in
308	308	the family court division of any state district court.
309	309	C. An equitable claim based on contributions to the
310	310	relationship accrues on termination of cohabitation and is
311	311	subject to equitable defenses.
312	312	D. In addition to other laws governing an equitable
313	313	claim, the court adjudicating a claim under this section shall
314	314	consider:
315	315	(1) the nature and value of contributions to
316	316	the relationship by each cohabitant, including the value to
317	317	each cohabitant and the market value of the contributions;
318	318	(2) the duration and continuity of the
319	319	cohabitation;
320	320	(3) the extent to which a cohabitant
321	321	reasonably relied on representations or conduct of the other
322	322	cohabitant;
323	323	(4) the extent to which a cohabitant
324	324	demonstrated an intent to share or not to share property with
325	325	the other cohabitant; and
326	326	(5) other relevant factors.
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355	355	SECTION 8. [NEW MATERIAL] EFFECT OF COURT ORDER OR
356	356	JUDGMENT ON THIRD PARTY.--
357	357	A. A court order or judgment granting relief under
358	358	the Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act against a
359	359	cohabitant or a cohabitant's estate is an order or judgment in
360	360	favor of a general creditor.
361	361	B. A court order or judgment granting relief under
362	362	the Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act shall not impair
363	363	the rights of a good-faith purchaser from or secured creditor
364	364	of a cohabitant.
365	365	SECTION 9. [NEW MATERIAL] PRINCIPLES OF LAW AND EQUITY.--
366	366	The principles of law and equity supplement the Uniform
367	367	Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act except to the extent
368	368	inconsistent with the Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies
369	369	Act.
370	370	SECTION 10. [NEW MATERIAL] UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND
371	371	CONSTRUCTION.--In applying and construing the Uniform
372	372	Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act, a court shall consider the
373	373	promotion of uniformity of the law among jurisdictions that
374	374	enact it.
375	375	SECTION 11. [NEW MATERIAL] RELATION TO ELECTRONIC
376	376	SIGNATURES IN GLOBAL AND NATIONAL COMMERCE ACT.--The Uniform
377	377	Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act modifies, limits or
378	378	supersedes the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and
379	379	National Commerce Act, 15 U.S.C. Section 7001 et seq., as
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408	408	amended, but does not modify, limit or supersede 15 U.S.C.
409	409	Section 7001(c) or authorize electronic delivery of any of the
410	410	notices described in 15 U.S.C. Section 7003(b).
411	411	SECTION 12. [NEW MATERIAL] TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS.--
412	412	A. The Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act
413	413	applies to a cohabitants' agreement made on or after the
414	414	effective date of the Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies
415	415	Act.
416	416	B. The Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act
417	417	applies to an equitable claim pursuant to the Uniform
418	418	Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act that accrues on or after the
419	419	effective date of the Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies
420	420	Act.
421	421	SECTION 13. [NEW MATERIAL] SEVERABILITY.--If a provision
422	422	of the Uniform Cohabitants' Economic Remedies Act or its
423	423	application to a person or circumstance is held invalid, the
424	424	invalidity does not affect another provision or application
425	425	that can be given effect without the invalid provision.
426	426	SECTION 14. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
427	427	provisions of this act is July 1, 2023.
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