Final answer:
When a coordination complex dissolves in water, the complex ion dissociates from its counter ions while the ligands stay attached to the metal cation due to strong coordinate covalent bonds.
Step-by-step explanation:
The behavior of a coordination complex when it is dissolved in water is that the complex ion dissociates from the counter ions, but the ligands remain attached to the metal cation. This is because when a coordination complex enters an aqueous solution, the collective interactions between the water molecules and the complex may result in the detachment of the counter ions from the complex ion. However, the ligands which are bound to the central metal ion through coordinate covalent bonds will generally not detach because these bonds are quite strong. An example would be when a complex such as [Cu(NH3)4]SO4 is dissolved in water, the sulfate will dissociate from the [Cu(NH3)4]2+ complex ion, but the ammonia ligands will remain coordinated to the copper(II) ion.