Bell v. Bell

Mr. Bell (defendant) and Mrs. Bell (plaintiff) divorced under an agreement requiring the husband to pay alimony until the wife died, remarried, or lived with another man "so as to give the outward appearance of marriage." The wife began living with another man, J.R., eventually spending most of her time at his apartment for three years, though the apartment was in J.R.'s name, he paid the rent, and the two never combined their finances. The husband stopped paying alimony based on the cohabitation clause, and the wife filed a contempt complaint. The probate court dismissed her complaint, but the appellate court reversed, reading the clause to require that J.R. actually support the wife financially, which he did not. The husband appealed.