I've often wondered if polyamorus families could make an end run around the old anti-polygamy laws by creating a corporation. It would give legal protection for shared property and money. Would also provide a mechanism for divorce by allowing the remaining people to buy out the shares of the person leaving. It wouldn't be perfect but it would be a start.
I'm personally not poly in any way, but it's a fun thought experiment about how one could make it work in the current legal climate.
A while back, I was joking to American gay friends that if they wanted to have their rights recognised in post-Citizens United America, they ought to set up an LLC together rather than get married.
... and adopt and raise children, pass their SS to their spouse when they "die" (go bankrupt?), marry human "persons", marry horse, dogs, the subway train et al?
Very true. There's a lot that legal marriage provides which can't be found in a corporation. The idea is that incorporating would provide some benefits and protections that the poly family wouldn't have otherwise.
I honestly wasn't joking at all. It's something I've thought of off-and-on over the years.
I could see how a trust would be better, though, in the US at least, I think a corp / LLC might be more flexible. And here, especially if the corp is formed in a few rules state like Nevada or Delaware, the paperwork isn't too terrible for small organizations.
I'm personally not poly in any way, but it's a fun thought experiment about how one could make it work in the current legal climate.