Dear Cassie: What is cohabitation, and how does it impact alimony?
-B.P.
Dear B.P.:
“Cohabitation” is a legal construct. It is defined in the alimony statute as a “mutually supportive, intimate personal relationship in which a couple has undertaken duties and privileges that are commonly associated with marriage or civil union but does not necessarily maintain a single common household.”
Cohabitation is a basis to modify or terminate alimony. If a supported spouse is cohabitating, the supporting spouse can ask the court to change the alimony arrangements.
Because cohabitation is a legal construct, there is no particular set of facts that must exist to be able to prove it. Cohabitation turns on the specifics of the particular relationship. The alimony statute identifies several factors that a court “shall” consider in determining whether cohabitation is occurring, but the list is not exhaustive. The factors include “living together, the frequency of contact, [and] the duration of the relationship,” “intertwined finances such as joint bank accounts and other joint holdings or liabilities,” and ‘recognition of the relationship in the couple’s social and family circle.”
Importantly, a couple does not have to live together full-time to be determined to be cohabiting. The existence (or lack thereof) of cohabitation is fact-specific.
If you need assistance with a cohabitation claim, you should seek the advice of matrimonial counsel.
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Cassie Murphy is a divorce and family law Partner with the Law Offices of Paone, Zaleski & Murphy, with offices in Red Bank and Woodbridge.
