Protection of Partners in Informal Long-Term Relationships

I. The need for protection informal cohabitation outside of marriage is a fact of life in western countries. its incidence and significance varies in different countries, but in all states it is increasingly common. The reasons for this are manifold, ranging from informed decisions to indifference to legal consequences. Many children live in these relationships, often from previous relationships with other partners. historically, the law’s basic attitude towards cohabitation relationships is summarized by the famous quote by napoléon: “Les concubins ignorent la loi, la loi ignore donc les concubins”. however, this is no longer true. Many countries have legislated extensively on cohabitation, acknowledging at least its existence and relevance for society. even in countries where there is no such extensive legislation, such as Germany and england, it cannot be said that the law is silent with regard to cohabitants. not only do many statutes refer, or apply, to cohabitants, but in many court decisions the law had to take a stance towards cohabitation, often resorting to curious constructs in order to arrive at just and fair results. Sometimes the results have been far from satisfying1 and arguably they lack an underlying coherent structure. Some have argued that this merely reflects the normal chaos of life and indeed family law.2 But can the state and society as a whole really afford to stand aside and watch the chaos and its consequences unfold? let me give some examples of those consequences. in the case of children, there is universal agreement that it is not their fault that their parents were not