by KYW's Ian Bush

A decision this week by the New Jersey Supreme Court shakes up 20 years of palimony law.

One area family law attorney says it may open the floodgates for new cases.

The ruling says people don't have to live together for palimony to be awarded. They need only a "marital-type" relationship. Before, both were required.

Haddonfield attorney Eric Spevak says the decision has turned the law on its head:

"If you're in a dating relationship, and one party is wealthier than the other, without regard for gender, and someone says, 'I promise to support you so long as we're dating,' and they don't even live together, or they live together for a little bit and then break up, you're going to have tons of litigation."

The court defines a marriage-like couple as sharing property and finances, with an expressed or implied promise to support.