ABSTRACT
As more couples live together without formalizing their relationship many legal systems around the world have been re-examining what, if any, legal consequences should attach to intimate, non-marital cohabitation. In most developed, western countries, the incidence of cohabitation has undoubtedly increased , albeit it is notoriously difficult to produce wholly accurate statistics and international comparisons are problematic. The response of legal systems around the world to non-marital cohabitation spans the spectrum from criminalisation to treating qualifying cohabiting couples in the same way as spouses. Legal systems around the world have responded very differently to non-marital cohabitation. Where extra-marital sex remains criminal, cohabitation may attract penalties, but that is no longer the case in developed, western countries. Unlike marriage, cohabitation does not come in a neat package, with starting and termination dates, and, if legal consequences are to flow from cohabitation, the relationships that qualify must be identified.
