Live-in-relationships also referred to as cohabitation is an arrangement where two people live together but are not married.  They are often involved in a romantic or sexually intimate relationship on a long-term or permanent basis.

OBJECTIONS

Contemporary objections to cohabiting couples include religious opposition to non-marital unions, social pressure for couples to get married and potential effects of cohabitation on a child’s development.

EFFECT ON CHILDREN

• lower performance in school
• greater risk of suspension or expulsion
• behavioral and emotional problems

ADVANTAGES

• No social and legal responsibilities
• Net practice before the final match
• Sharing is caring
• Lesser account abilities and duties
• Freedom to take decisions
• Compatibility test
• Equality and mutual understanding

DISADVANTAGES

• Free to exit anytime
• Social Acceptance
• No new excitement
• Lack the respect and stability of marriage
• Societal pressure and criticism
• Lack of commitment
• Receiving end
• Nature, behaviour, temperament, attitude everything changes in partners after marriage

INDIAN LAW

Live-in relationships, being an alien concept to the Indian legislature does not have any legal implications for the couples who live together without marriage involved in the relationship. Since living relationships also support pre-marital sex, there are high chances of a child being born. These children, unlike the successors born out of wedlock, do not have any rights over the inheritance. Besides this, society treats them as illegitimate children, which is unacceptable. However, the Hon’ble Supreme Court cleared them of this ill-fated and granted them the status of a legitimate child along with the right to property. Live-in relationships were legally considered void-ab-initio. But in a judgment in 1978, such relationships are valid for the first time because of the Supreme Court. If the requisites of a marriage such as mental soundness, the fulfillment of the legal age of marriage, consent, etc. are all satisfied, the couple is considered to be in a legal live-in relationship.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MARRIAGE AND LIVE IN RELATIONSHIPS

• The union of two persons that is formally recognized by law is known as marriage. It is a formal commitment between the couple and Live in relationship refers to a kind of an arrangement where a couple decides to live together.
• Mostly the children born from a marriage are socially accepted and parents often find happiness to have them in their life and Children born out of a live in relationship may require some commitments and it depends upon the couple that how they would manage the raising of children.
• Marriages come with responsibilities and one tends to be answerable to the other. However, sometimes the freedom may also be restricted and live in relationships are associated with the freedom, both tend to have their own space as no obligations or responsibilities are involved.
• Marriages are also associated with the union of families rather than the individuals. Even if there is not much involvement of families, but still the marriage is regarded as a serious affair by the parents and  families do not involve much with the couples as the concept of live in relationship is more about exploring each other.

We can safely state that relationships have become a questionable and complex thing to understand. Marriage is also required by the society however the modern generation is busy finding the suitable ways to safeguard their relationship by entering into various test-run techniques. It has become a trend in big cities.