Does Cohabitation Impact Alimony? Know What To Do

Alimony has been a hotly debated topic for decades now. As time has gone by, it’s become clear that not just men are demanding Alimony from their wives or ex-wives. Cohabitation is rising, and many people are getting divorced and cohabiting with another person. Men were obliged to provide financially for women during marriage and were generally entitled to receive financial support from women after separation or divorce under a property law regime known as community property.

However, specific laws and norms can still be misconstrued as oppression of one gender over another. One such example is alimony payments from a marriage. Alimony is meant to serve as financial support for a soon-to-be ex-husband after divorcing his wife, but lawmakers do not always make this distinction clear.

• What Is Alimony?

Alimony is a legal obligation, or the payment of money from one spouse to another before, during, and after marriage, either to sustain the receiving spouse’s standard of living or as compensation for a loss suffered by a spouse in the marriage upon divorce.

In many countries, there are no clear laws defining Alimony; however, some states have listed their rules in this regard. For example, before enacting the Domestic Violence Act in 2005, which was supposed to protect women from abuse by their husbands, women were entitled to Alimony even if they had committed any wrongdoing. At the same time, men, on the other hand, were expected to maintain their wives at all costs, even if they were working and earning more than their wives.

• What Is Cohabitation?

Cohabitation is the living together of a couple in a committed relationship, before and after marriage, intending to get married. The term is used both for those whose relationships are designed to lead to marriage and those who have ended up getting married. You can also visit a trusted firm like Jensen Family Law serving all of Arizona. To sum up, if you are together for a certain amount of time and have your own home (even if it’s only a mattress on the floor), you might cohabitate.

• How does it affect Alimony?

It is a fallacy that cohabiting couples are responsible for decreasing the number of divorces and decreasing the number of alimony payments. It is because people are moving in with their partners, leading to stable relationships, but not necessarily marriage. It causes problems when it comes to issues of Alimony.

A couple could live together for many years and then decide to move in together, but they still have different financial statuses, making it seem like the male partner’s financial status has stayed the same. The way forward is for both men and women to look at alimony payments in a joint custody situation rather than just assigning one gender as the primary giver and another as a receiver.

• Remarriage and Alimony:

Prenuptial agreements can be a big help for spouses to deal with their economic rights without the interference of any third party. In some countries, the couple has to abide by a prenuptial agreement. This agreement is binding and must be followed even when they are in a divorce action if they have decided that they are going to divide their assets and liabilities in a specific ratio. If one of them gets married again, their new spouse will not have any right to what was pre-divided.

Conclusion:

As can be seen, the interpretation of laws and rules relating to alimony payment is critical to ensure that one party is not paying unfair amounts simply because they are of one gender. To ensure you are treated fairly, do your research and consult lawyers before attempting to reach an agreement.