Divorce Advice for Men | Fathers Rights Divorce | Child Custody

Question:

I pay alimony to my ex-wife. Our divorce decree is silent on the issue, but it is my understanding that I should no longer have to pay alimony if she is remarried or cohabiting.

My ex-wife is engaged, but I'm still paying her spousal support. It seems totally unreasonable to have to continue to pay alimony to an ex-spouse after she remarries.

So how can I get my alimony payments stopped after my ex-spouse remarries if the divorce agreement is silent on the matter of her cohabiting or remarrying?

Question:

I cohabited with my ex-girlfriend for three years before we broke up. She is now threatening to take me to court to prove common law marriage in order to receive alimony.

We have never presented ourselves as a married couple, and we only have one joint account together.

Will she be able to prove common law marriage and force me to pay her alimony?

By Matt Allen

Editor, DadsDivorce.com

There are now more children who live with unwed, cohabiting parents than with divorced parents and that affects fathers rights to child custody, according to a recent report. 

The National Marriage Project and the Institute for American Values reports there are 12 times as many cohabiting couples with children as there were in 1970.

By the time children reach 12 years old, 42 percent of them have lived with cohabitating parents while only 24 percent have lived with parents who have divorced, according to the National Survey of Family Growth.

If you are in a cohabiting relationship, you need to be aware of your rights to your children and if your partner has any rights to your assets should the relationship end.

Studies have shown non-marital unions are much less stable so it’s important to protect your interests before a break up.

Question:

My children primarily live with my ex-wife and I pay her child support per our child custody agreements.

Her boyfriend has now moved in and they are a cohabitating couple with dual incomes.

Do child support laws allow for a modification of child support if her boyfriend is now living with her?

Question:

My ex-wife put a morality clause in our divorce agreement specifying that I am not allowed to have a girlfriend around our children.

My girlfriend and I are serious but not ready for marriage.

So if I file a "declaration of informal marriage" at the court clerk's office, will this overrule the morality clause?