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Dodd & Dodd Attorneys, PLLC Louisville Kentucky

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If an Ex Spouse Starts Living With Another Can You Terminate Maintenance

Ex Spouse Starts Living With Another Can You Terminate Maintenance

If an ex spouse starts living with another can you terminate maintenance payments?  Permanent maintenance is frequently ordered for a specified time or until a specified event, e.g. death or remarriage.  If the recipient of maintenance after a Louisville divorce cohabits with a member of the opposite sex then the legislature has indicated that support may be adjustable or terminated.

There is no automatic process to adjust or terminate maintenance just because the supported spouse is now living with another partner unless the parties previously agreed in writing that such circumstance caused a specified result.  Kentucky Family Code provides that there is a rebuttable presumption, affecting the burden of proof, of decreased need for maintenance if the supported party is cohabiting with a person of the opposite sex. Upon a determination that circumstances have changed, the court may modify or terminate the maintenance.

The issue can become quite challenging and raises some frequently asked questions related to the issue: “does holding oneself out to be the husband or wife of the person with whom one is cohabiting necessarily constitute cohabitation?”  So the party wanting to terminate or reduce support is required to bring a motion to seek and adjustment of maintenance unless the parties agree otherwise.  When the Court looks at the matter the Court may presume there is now a lesser need for maintenance but that presumption can be proved to be invalid by the cohabiting spouse.

Interestingly, the legislature does not suggest that cohabiting with a same gender person, whether it is a love interest or not, impacts the financial ‘needs’ of the supported spouse.

Most people are not obviously skilled or adept at introducing evidence and proving facts in a complex case.  If you are wondering if your ex spouse starts living with another can you terminate maintenance you need the advice and counsel of the experienced divorce and family law attorneys at Dodd & Dodd.  Protect your own interests and contact us or call 502-584-1108 to schedule an appointment for a remote or socially distanced consultation with one of our experienced divorce and family law attorneys.