Legal Regulation of Cohabitation: Between Facts and Norms

From a normative perspective, cohabitation is the sum total of the practice of voluntary community of non-spousal heterosexuals, which has a similar kernel as marriage and shares the value base of maximizing the interests of children and protecting the weak, and therefore has the necessity and legitimacy of legal adjustment. The legal regulation of cohabitation must respect the priority of party autonomy and harmonize the balance of multiple values, technically distinguishing between personal and property effects. In terms of personal effects, there is only a duty of support but not a duty of fidelity between cohabitants, and the dissolution of the cohabitation relationship is based on the principle of freedom, but child support and the extreme imbalance of interests after dissolution are still subject to legal adjustment. In terms of property effects, cohabitation economic community is essentially a civil partnership, during the cohabitation period, the property acquired by each party belongs to the individual, and the property acquired based on the common life or common production and management of property belongs to both parties. When a cohabitation relationship is dissolved, the division of common property is based on the contributions of both parties, taking into account the interests of the children, the interests of the woman and the protection of the party not at fault, with the party who has done more housework entitled to request compensation from the other party.