Also known as: necessaries · necessary of life · necessities of life
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A common-law doctrine imposing liability on a spouse or parent for basic support items such as food, clothing, shelter, and medical care purchased by the other spouse or by a child when the obligated party fails to supply them directly. Liability attaches when the dependent purchases such items and the obligated party fails to provide them.
Nestor Navarro stopped depositing paychecks into the joint account after separating from Natalie Norris. Natalie purchased prescription medication and paid for the couple's child's therapy sessions using her credit card. The clinic billed the charges directly. Nestor is held personally liable because the purchases qualify as necessaries that he had a duty to supply.
Noreen Nguyen filed for legal separation from Neville Norton and obtained a temporary order restraining asset transfers. Neville sold company cryptocurrency to cover payroll and rent for the family home. The court permitted the sale because the expenditures qualified as necessities of life rather than ordinary-course business activity.
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Naomi Norton received state welfare benefits calculated under a maximum-grant rule that reduced per-child aid for larger families. She used the funds to purchase food and clothing for her children. The rule was upheld even though it limited resources available for necessaries of life.
Nexus Technologies sought to open a new ice plant in a town already served by an existing supplier. State regulators denied the license. The denial was evaluated in light of preserving community access to a basic commodity at reasonable prices.
Nina Nielsen moved to a new county and immediately required emergency surgery. The county hospital refused treatment under a one-year residency rule for free care. The rule was struck down because it blocked access to medical necessaries for recent arrivals.
A school principal searched a student's purse after reports that she was distributing cigarettes. The search uncovered evidence of drug activity. The Court upheld the search because schools have authority to protect students from items that threaten health and safety.
Necessaries include food, clothing, shelter, and medical care purchased by one spouse when the other fails to provide them. The extent of the obligation turns on the circumstances of the parties, including the need of one spouse and the ability of the other to pay.
No. The Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act expressly permits transfers or expenditures for the necessities of life even when a temporary restraining order is in place. The restrained party must still notify the moving party of any extraordinary expenditures.
A minor remains liable for the reasonable value of necessaries actually furnished even though most contracts are voidable. Housing obtained when the minor could have lived with parents is not treated as a necessary.
Community property is liable for debts incurred for necessaries of life during marriage. Creditors may reach community assets and, in some states, the separate property of either spouse for such obligations.
…welfare aid upon which may depend the ability of the families to obtain the very means to subsist—food, shelter, and other necessities of life. In each case, the District Court found that appellees met the test for residence in their jurisdictions, as well as all other eligibility requirements except the requirement of residence…