ABSTRACT
Legal responses towards cohabitation are different even in countries belonging to similar legal traditions, showing the dynamic nature of family law. Indeed, cohabitation has encountered a wide range of social, legislative, and judicial reactions. This chapter examines the legal framework of cohabitation in the US and Poland as representative approaches. Both countries, like many around the world, do not extend legal protections to cohabitants by default; such an approach stems from the traditional preference for marital relationships. This chapter also considers the few countries that do provide some legal protection to cohabitants in various ways – for example, New Zealand and Australia recognize cohabitations as de facto partnerships and provide them potential judicial remedies at the end of a cohabitation. With the rate of cohabitation continuing to rise, it is important to consider these various legal approaches to cohabitation, particularly that governing the end of a cohabitation.
Ryznar, Margaret and Stępień-Sporek, Anna, The Legal Framework of Cohabitation (March 13, 2021). Handbook on Family Policy (Oxford University Press), forthcoming.
First posted 2021-04-03 09:45:39
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