Cohabitation and the Law

In the eyes of the law, cohabitation is not the legal equivalent of marriage or common-law marriage. This review ex- amines the extent of heterosexual cohabitation in the United States and judicial responses to issues raised by couples who have chosen nonmarital cohabitation. Issues examined include the effect of non- marital cohabitation on the institution of marriage, contemporary legal considerations in cohabitation, the use of cohabitation con- tracts, and key legal differences between cohabitation and marriage. Since state laws have not established cohabitation as a legal relation- ship, the rights of cohabitors have been established through court decisions. Consequently, cohabitors are likely to find themselves in a position of uncertainty with respect to their legal rights. Three legal approaches to cohabitation are discussed and several issues that still need to be addressed by the law are reviewed.