Wife’s Spousal Support Terminated Because She Was Cohabiting With Another Female In A Relationship Analogous To A Marriage.

In the case of Brennan v. Albertson, the Virginia Court of Appeals, upheld a trial court’s decision to terminate an ex-wife’s spousal support because she was “habitually cohabiting with another person in a relationship analogous to a marriage” pursuant to Code § 20-109(A) even though there was no evidence that the ex-wife and her female roommate were sexually involved with one another.  The ex-wife and her female friend shared a residence for a period of years. They regarded this arrangement as permanent or indefinite. They were interdependent financially and with respect to childcare. The ex-wife executed a deed of gift to make her female friend a joint owner of the home in which she held considerable equity. She did this freely, trusting that the female friend would care for her children in the event of her death. The female friend paid the ex-wife’s mortgage from the time they moved into the house and also paid the electric, water, and cellular telephone bills for the ex-wife and her children. The ex-wife was present at the birth of her female friend’s daughter and provided childcare for her female friend from the time of the child’s birth. Beyond childcare, the ex-wife and her female friend functioned as a family unit: they routinely shared meals, vacationed together every year, attended each other’s family reunions, occasionally attended church together, and attended the activities of each other’s children. They shared household chores, such as cooking and laundry.