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Rehabilitating Partnership Marriage As A Theory Of Wealth Distribution At Divorce: In Recognition Of A Shared Life, Alicia B. Kelly

Alicia B. Kelly

This article offers a critique, a reinvigoration and a reconstruction of partnership marriage theory, a theory that now, at least rhetorically, dominates modern divorce law. Although current constructions in law have distorted the model, I argue that the core substantive values embodied in the partnership marriage model continue to have considerable appeal as the basis for a system of wealth distribution at divorce. Perhaps the greatest virtue of this approach to marriage is that couples themselves commonly understand sharing and joint contribution as defining characteristics of marriage. Infused with an equality norm, partnership marriage also offers hope of advancing the …