How is alimony affected by cohabitation?

In Hawaii, alimony (or spousal support) is a payment made by one spouse to the other after a legal separation or divorce. The payment is meant to help the recipient spouse continue to maintain their standard of living. Alimony is usually affected by cohabitation, which means living together in an intimate relationship with a romantic partner without getting married. When a spouse who is receiving alimony begins to cohabitate, it may be grounds for the paying spouse to terminate or reduce alimony payments. This is because the cohabitating partner may be providing financial support to the receiving spouse and thus there is less need for alimony payments. When cohabitation is brought to the court’s attention, the court may analyze the financial and living arrangements of the receiving spouse to determine what sort of adjustment is necessary to the alimony payments. It is important for anyone receiving alimony to understand how alimony is affected by cohabitation. Even if the receiving spouse is not formally married to their partner, the court may still consider the arrangement to be a de facto marriage and thus reduce the alimony payments accordingly. It is generally best to notify the court if the recipient is considering cohabitating, as the court may decide whether to modify the alimony agreement prior to the couple moving in together.

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How is alimony affected by cohabitation?

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