If you have questions about divorce, legal separation, alimony entitlement, or alimony in Connecticut, please feel free to call the experienced divorce attorneys at Maya Murphy, P.C. in Westport today at 203-221-3100 or email Joseph C. Maya, Esq. at JMaya@Mayalaw.com.
Overview
An article from the Duke Law Journal examines the legal effects of an ex-spouse’s cohabitation with a new partner. In most jurisdictions, this action may trigger a cause of action for revisiting the ex-spouse’s alimony.
Overall, the article examines alimony entitlement in light of today’s contemporary society. The author argues that revocation of alimony on the basis of new cohabitation is inconsistent with the purpose of divorce legislation. Rather, modifications on alimony following cohabitation should be revised into a more workable format to meet society’s needs.
Abstract
As non marital cohabitation has skyrocketed over the last several decades, courts and legislatures have increasingly struggled to decide what legal effect an ex-spouse’s cohabitation with a new partner should have on the receipt of alimony payments. In seeking to answer this cohabitation question, states have taken a variety of approaches. Often, however, courts’ answers to the cohabitation question are not grounded in the rationale that those courts used to award alimony in the first place and may therefore lead to inconsistent or absurd results. This Note addresses the cohabitation question and argues that states should revisit their current approaches in light of the multiple contemporary theories of alimony and twenty-first century social- science research on cohabitation. Ultimately, this Note proposes several clarifications to existing law in order to provide a sensible, workable rule that would introduce consistency to courts’ considerations of the cohabitation question.
For a free consultation, please do not hesitate to call the experienced family law and divorce attorneys at Maya Murphy, P.C. in Westport, CT at 203-221-3100. We may also be reached for inquiries by email at JMaya@mayalaw.com.
Source: Emily M. May, Should Moving in Mean Losing Out? Making a Case to Clarify the Legal Effect of Cohabitation on Alimony. 62 Duke L. J. 403 2012-2013
