Palimony is the division of financial assets and real property on the termination of a personal live-in relationship wherein the parties are not legally married. The term "palimony" is not a legal or historical term, but rather a colloquial portmanteau of the words pal and alimony. Nevertheless, numerous "secondary" legal sources refer to the term, and attempt to describe its influence and implications upon actual statute law.
The term was coined by celebrity divorce attorney Marvin Mitchelson in 1977 when his client Michelle Triola Marvin filed an unsuccessful suit against the actor Lee Marvin.[1] While the suit was unsuccessful in this instance, the courts found that "in the absence of an express agreement, courts may look to a variety of other remedies to divide property equitably."[2] It is unclear as to how many states currently expressly forbid any kind of palimony to be awarded—that is to say, how many states allow both partners in an unmarried cohabitation to expressly keep all that is under their name including income and property, but it is widely recommended by legal offices across the country that, before committing to an unmarried but romantic cohabitation, the couple should enter into a legal cohabitation agreement.[3]