Can proving cohabitation stop alimony? Yes. Put plainly, if your ex-spouse begins living with a new boyfriend or girlfriend after you were ordered to pay alimony to him or her, you may ask the court to downwardly modify your alimony obligation or terminate it completely. Despite their ability to seek a downward modification or termination of alimony pursuant to Georgia law, many obligated ex-spouses find it difficult if not impossible to prove to the court that their ex-spouse is living in cohabitation with a significant other.

Very rarely will an ex-spouse receiving alimony be willing to admit to cohabitation, because such an admission has the potential to negatively impact that amount of alimony received. Additionally, alimony recipients may go to great lengths to mask such relationships in an effort to thwart an obligated ex-spouse’s efforts to reduce alimony payment. With this being said, what is an obligated ex-spouse to do if he or she knows their ex-spouse is cohabitating with a lover but is unable to prove the relationship? Below is a list of questions and concerns for obligated ex-spouses to consider in determining whether there is enough evidence to seek a modification of alimony based on the recipient’s cohabitation.