ABSTRACT
In the late nineties, the legislation relating to the Danish social welfare system underwent a reform. One of the most striking features of the reform which differs from the former situation is the establishment of what could be named the labour market principle as a general and fundamental principle for all adults, women as well as men. This shift of values means that every individual is faced with the assumption, that she or he must support her- or himself in the labour market. In a legal development perspective for women it entails a movement from the marriage contract to the labour contract as the most significant legal figure in a support context.
