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    • cohabitation
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Question from reorxxxOct-30
in the state of oklahoma what are the laws concerning cohabitation after divorce and what is considred cohabitation?
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pg1067 Nov-1 78912.2
Cohabitation is living together.  Why would you think there'd be a law on something like this?
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reorxxx Nov-2 78912.3
in oklahoma its illegal to cohabitate for first 6 months after divorce decree is finalized .how often do people have to live with each other to be considered to be cohabitating?also is there a law about  cohabitation after that 6 months?
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pg1067 Nov-2 78912.4
Not sure where you're getting your information, but it is not illegal to cohabitate with someone other than your former spouse after a divorce.
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reorxxx Nov-3 78912.5
you must not know the law then if you did you would know it says it is on the oklahoma bar s web page plus i have a friend who is being charged with it.so how can he be charged with it if its not a law
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reorxxx Nov-3 78912.6

this is whats on the web page

Q: When is my divorce final?

A: It is final the day you go to court and the divorce is granted. You are a single person once the judge pronounces you divorced. However, Oklahoma law prohibits remarriage or cohabitation with a third party for six months following the decree. Should you and your spouse decide to reconcile during this period, a joint application can be filed in the court and the decree will be set aside, so long as neither party has remarried a third party during the interim.

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reorxxx Nov-3 78912.7
can someone who actually knows the law answer my question about  cohabitation/
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pg1067 Nov-3 78912.8

Ok, smart guy....

With all due respect to the Oklahoma Bar Association (which is not a state agency but rather, a voluntary membership organization), the quoted statement is wrong.  You need to read the actual statute.

Section 43-123 of the Oklahoma Statutes provides as follows:

"It shall be unlawful for either party to an action for divorce whose former husband or wife is living to marry in this state a person other than the divorced spouse within six (6) months from date of decree of divorce granted in this state, or to cohabit with such other person in this state during said period if the marriage took place in another state." (emphasis added).

What this means is that two things are illegal.  First, it's illegal to get married in Oklahoma to someone other than your former spouse within six months following the date of an Oklahoma divorce decree.  Second, it is illegal to cohabit in Oklahoma with someone other than your former spouse whom you marry in state other than Oklahoma within six months following the date of an Oklahoma divorce.

As you have summarized the law, it would be illegal for a divorced person to move in with his/her parents or a sibling or a buddy from work.  Such an onerous restriction on one's living arrangements would be unconstitutional.

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reorxxx Nov-3 78912.9
thank you you answered one part but what if one person has their own residence and is stay at a boyfriends house for several days at a time is that considered cohabitation?
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pg1067 Nov-4 78912.10

First of all, remember that the only time it's illegal for a recently divorced person to cohabitate with someone else is where a marriage has occurred.  The statute in question does not prohibit a recently divorced person from cohabitating with a person who is not his/her spouse.

As for what constitutes cohabitating under the statute, I cannot give you a hard and fast answer.  It's going to be a factual inquiry that considers things like whether the person has his/her own dresser and keeps his/her clothes at the other person's house, how many days out of a month he/she stays there, whether he/she receives mail there, etc.  I strongly suspect that very few, if any, local district attorneys would bother prosecuting someone for adultery under these circumstances.

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