18 Cal. 3d 660, 557 P.2d 106, 134 Cal. Rptr. 815 (Cal. 1976)
Marvin v. Marvin is the foundational California Supreme Court decision that ushered in the modern doctrine popularly known as "palimony." Before Marvin, many courts refused to recognize any legally enforceable obligations arising from nonmarital cohabitation.
Are agreements between unmarried cohabitants concerning support and property sharing enforceable, and may courts grant contract or equitable relief where the consideration is not inseparably based on sexual services?
Adults who voluntarily cohabit may lawfully contract with respect to property rights and support, and such contracts will be enforced unless expressly and inseparably founded on meretricious sexual services. Where no express agreement is shown, courts may examine the parties' conduct to determine whether an implied-in-fact contract exists; failing that, equitable remedies such as constructive trust, resulting trust, or quantum meruit may be available to prevent unjust enrichment. Cohabitation alone does not create property rights analogous to those arising from marriage, and courts will not impose community-property or alimony obligations absent marriage. If part of a bargain is unlawful (e.g., sexual services as consideration), lawful portions may be severed and enforced if they are independent and supported by separate consideration. See, e.g., California Civil Code §§ 1599, 1608.
Yes. Express agreements between nonmarital cohabitants are enforceable unless they rest on an express, inseparable exchange of sexual services for support; in the absence of an express contract, courts may recognize implied-in-fact agreements or grant equitable relief to allocate property or compensate services. The judgment sustaining the demurrer was reversed in part and the case was remanded for trial consistent with these principles.
Marvin fundamentally reframed disputes between unmarried cohabitants as contract and equity cases rather than purely family-law matters. It coined the analytical template for "palimony" claims: prove an enforceable express or implied bargain or, failing that, obtain restitutionary or trust remedies to prevent unjust enrichment. It also set the outer limits—no automatic marital-style property rights and no enforcement of sex-for-support bargains. For law students, Marvin is a canonical case on public policy and contracts, the enforceability of intimate-partner agreements, implied-in-fact contracts, severability, and equitable remedies.