If you have questions about divorce, legal separation, living together contracts, 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.
By entering into a “living together contract,” unmarried cohabitants can provide rights to one another that are analogous to rights granted to married couples. The validity of such agreements was the subject of the well-publicized Marvin case in the California Supreme Court. In that case, the court held that an express or implied agreement between a couple living together outside wedlock to share income in consideration of (or exchange for) companionship could be legally enforceable. However, Ms. Marvin wasn’t awarded “palimony” because the court found that Mr. Marvin hadn’t agreed to share his income with her. For more on the Marvin case, see the article “Lessons Learned the Hard Way: Cohabitation and the Law.”
When an agreement expressly includes consideration of sexual services provided by one of the parties, a court is more likely to find the contract unenforceable. For example, if one partner agrees to share his or her income in return for the other partner’s love and companionship, a court may find that the contract implicates “meretricious” (apparently attractive, but actually of little value or relating to a prostitute) sexual activity. The court may refuse to enforce the contract. Proving an oral agreement or an implied contract between unmarried cohabitants is also difficult, and several courts have refused to recognize such an agreement due to lack of proof.
Cohabitation Agreement Requirements
The majority of states now recognizes these cohabitation agreements, though many require that the agreement be in writing and be signed by the parties. The legal requirements for valid cohabitation contracts tend to parallel the requirements of some other contracts, because they’re essentially just another type of contract. Only a small number of recent cases have held that contracts between unmarried cohabitants are unenforceable.
A cohabitation agreement is more flexible and less regulated than a marital agreement. Couples typically include the following key points in their contracts:
- Distribution of property in case of death or breakup
- Financial support during the relationship or after
- Payment of debts from before and during the relationship
- Division of the principal residence upon death of one partners or breakup
- Creation of a joint tenants with rights of survivorship allowing the other partner to own the shared home if the other dies or adding both partners’ names to the deed
- Decide on support, custody, or visitation rights for minor children, although the court can disagree with this and decide differently based on what’s in the best interests of the children
- Determination of health care insurance responsibility
- Creation of advanced health care directives or health power of attorneys to allow both partners to make decisions about the other’s health care in case of incapacity
Cohabitation Agreements v. Prenuptial Agreements
Premarital and cohabitation agreements are apples and oranges. If you marry your partner when you previously had a cohabitation agreement, it will not be in effect after the marriage. In contrast, the whole purpose of the prenup is to determine what happens after marriage, in case the couple divorces. All states enforce at least some prenups and almost all states recognize cohabitation agreements.
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: FindLaw
