Divorce Advice for Men | Fathers Rights Divorce | Child Custody

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 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?

Question:

I am in a cohabitating relationship where we both keep our finances separate.

I don't believe our relationship would be defined as a "common law marriage," but if we break up will she have a right to make a claim to any of my assets?

Question:

I would like to know if I'm legally married. A while ago my ex-girlfriend and I participated in a nude "wedding" to win a free trip. She was still legally married at the time.

We lived together for many years as a couple but never had children, filed taxes as a married couple, shared insurance, or had an "official" ceremony. She has since left me and I have met a new woman that I wish to marry.

But in the eyes of the law, am I legally married to my ex? Was it a common law marriage?