A Liberal Analysis of Western Cohabitation Law

15 Pages Posted: 3 Mar 2009

See all articles by Shahar Lifshitz

Shahar Lifshitz

Bar-Ilan University - Faculty of Law

Date Written: February 2, 2009

Abstract

Enclosed please find an article manuscript, aiming to shed a new light on the regulation of spousal relationships.

In the manuscript I challenge the conventional divide between two regulatory extremes: On one hand, censure of non-marital conjugal relationships and public policy commendation of marriage lead conservatives to reject the application of marriage law to cohabiting partners. On the other hand, resting on principles such as freedom, tolerance and equality, liberals tend to equate the mutual legal commitments of cohabitants with those of married partners. I break this dichotomy by offering a novel liberal model, founded on the pluralist constitutional theory that underscores the state's obligation to create a range of social institutions that afford meaningful familial choices to individuals. This model sets up two default regimes - one for marriage and another for cohabitation - and allows same-sex and heterosexual couples to choose between and customize those defaults.

Keywords: Family law, cohabitants, Liberal

Suggested Citation

Lifshitz, Shahar, A Liberal Analysis of Western Cohabitation Law (February 2, 2009). Bar Ilan Univ. Pub Law Working Paper No. 07-09, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1352045 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1352045

Shahar Lifshitz (Contact Author)

Bar-Ilan University - Faculty of Law ( email )

Faculty of Law
Ramat Gan, 52900
Israel

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