WEST PALM BEACH — The bitter world of divorce and alimony took a novel twist Wednesday.

Andrew Craissati of Palm Beach Gardens had challenged paying alimony to his former wife, Patricia, arguing that their agreement called for him to pay only until her remarriage or if she "cohabitated" with another person for more than three months.

Patricia Craissati, 48, was later sentenced to prison.

The 4th District Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday that she is indeed "cohabitating" - with her cellmate.

Two members of the three-judge panel concurred and ordered her alimony payments stopped. A third dissented, writing Craissati's involuntary assignment to a cellmate is not cohabitation. "I would affirm the trial court's reasoning that this is an absurd result," wrote Judge Larry Klein.

The couple divorced in 2001. In 2005, Patricia Craissati was sentenced to nine years in prison for a DUI accident which severely injured two men. She is at Hillsborough Correctional Institution on the west coast.

Her attorney, Steven Cripps, said when he first heard of the ex-husband's argument that she was cohabitating with a cellmate he said: "Are you kidding me? You are going to take advantage of this situation and do this?"

Cripps says she's been receiving just over $2,000 a month in alimony while in prison. He said he will ask for a rehearing before the appeals court.

"It goes to show the most winnable case is losable and the most losable case is winnable," said the attorney of 29 years.

Andrew Craissati, a self-employed investment banker from West Palm Beach, said an uninformed person might consider his actions mean, but that there are many factors people don't know about. For one, he has had to pay as her house has sat empty because she did not want to rent it out. He called his victory "bittersweet."

"Everything about this case is just so sad," Craissati said.

His attorney, Lewis Kapner, said the ruling is grounded in the general language of the couple's agreement - cohabitation simply defined as living with another person for more than three months.

"The facts of the situation are novel. The law is not," Kapner said. "You can say cohabitation is wearing a blue dress. But that's the agreement."

Personally I don't see anything wrong, with the decision to cease alimony - she is living with another woman. What's your opinion???

My opinion: No way on earth should he be paying $2,000/mth. alimony to someone in prison.

bwahahaha, its just another consequence of her dui

Nobody should pay alimony child support yes.

I can't believe some people still get alimony.

I'm thinking it's for the stay-at-home wives/moms that had their husband divorce them.

Well after the divorce they aren't stay at home wives anymore.

So if they are cellmates for 7 years, is it a common law marriage? Whose Social security can she claim?

Oopps...meant to say stay-at-home moms.

But...they usually aren't still at home after the divorce.

I thought it was because they weren't skilled for outside work and to help keep the children at the same standard of living.

an ex inmate just filed for almost $3billion dollars in tax returns...

anything for a free buck



as the state of Florida does not recognize same sex marriages, nope, wont be common law marriage

It's a same sex issue.

in ohio when the discrimination of marriage amendment

(thats the anti gay marriage amendment)

it took away common law marriage

they used the fear of gays getting married to remove the rights of common law marriage as well

the ignorance of people is used against them all the time

i would suggest reading what you are voting for or against if you don't already

i wonder how much money the wording of that amendment saves the insurance companies

by the corporation for the corporation

just like seat belts

and no smoking in public laws

ignorance abounds (mommy and daddy govt loves us all)

[especially those at the insurance company]

I never thought about it that way, Adj4u. Missouri doesn't have common law marriages either.

nowadays they call it "spousal support" and it is supposed to compensate the woman for the time she spent raising kids and (usually) had to give up her career