Cohabitation is when two people have been living together for a significant amount of time in an emotionally and financially interdependent relationship. It usually involves two people sharing expenses, living arrangements, and other aspects of their daily lives.
Following a divorce or separation, both parties must make sure to honor the terms and conditions set by the court. Most of the time, this makes a partner, especially the one ordered by the court to pay alimony, feel the need to have their ex investigated for proof of cohabitation with a new partner.
If your ex is having an intimate personal relationship or cohabiting with another individual while receiving alimony payments from you, it is an obvious violation of your court-ordered agreement. A licensed private investigator can help you gather evidence of your ex cohabiting with someone else. The investigation allows you as well as the court to determine if your ex is indeed engaging in activities that can impact the terms and conditions of the divorce so they can be held accountable and pay back the alimony they receive from you.
Proving Cohabitation
Cohabitation investigations may involve surveillance, interviews, public records searches, gathering of documents, and other tactics necessary to gain all the evidence needed to prove that a divorcee is living with a new partner. For a successful litigation, all the gathered evidence needs to be admissible in court. This is only possible if the investigation is thoroughly and professionally done, and only experienced private investigators are best suited to conduct this type of investigation.
You should
find the best private investigator if you are concerned that your former spouse has started living with a new partner while you’re still tasked by the court to pay them alimony. They can help you find evidence to present in court that will invalidate your former partner’s rights to receive further payments.
What Happens during a Cohabitation Investigation
Private investigators are trained to conduct discreet surveillance to gather evidence of another person’s presence in your ex-spouse’s life. Here are some other ways a private investigator can help with your situation.
Surveillance
Surveillance activities require the use of specialized tools and advanced technology to monitor the activity of your ex-spouse. Sometimes, surveillance might need several people or a team to accomplish the investigation to gather the right evidence. This is extremely important to ensure that you have a strong case that could otherwise result in ill-informed accusations.
Interviews
Interviews are designed to gather the most accurate and relevant information to build the case. An investigator can interview neighbors, friends, associates, and other people who may have information about your ex-partner’s activities. However, the right questions must be asked to the right individuals, otherwise the claim would not be strong enough to progress.
Communication monitoring
This involves monitoring phone calls, emails, text messages, social media, and other forms of communication to uncover any evidence that your ex-spouse is living with someone else or receiving financial help from them.
Document searches
Private investigators also look at public records and documents such as leases, utility bills, bank statements, and others to find evidence of your ex-partner’s cohabitation. They even tend to conduct what they call “trash-pulling” to gather every piece of document that can help build the case. Other pieces of documents that can prove your ex is cohabiting with someone are also essential, like letters, banking paperwork, prescription bottles, and notes. If they can find evidence of your ex’s shared assets with another person, then your case is solid.
Background checks
Investigators can do background checks on any new person in your ex-spouse’s life to uncover information that can help with the investigation. Reports like criminal history, previous employment, education, and reference checks are some of the things investigators will look into when conducting cohabitation investigations.
Conclusion
Cohabitation investigations are best conducted by experienced private investigators who know how to obtain admissible evidence and build a successful case in court. With their experience and resources, they can provide you with the evidence you need to prove your former spouse is violating the terms and conditions of the divorce agreement. However, it is still up to the court to decide whether the evidence you gathered is sufficient to prove your ex’s guilt, if they must pay back any alimony payments they received while living with their new partner.
Do you want to talk to an experienced private investigator?
Contact us if you need assistance with a cohabitation investigation.
