Divorces are rarely easy situations. Aside from the emotional challenges that come with such a drastic change in your circumstances, they’re wrought with legal complications, too. Plus, for spouses who rely upon each other for financial support, the situation is even more challenging as divorce alimony questions also arise.
Determining Alimony During Divorce
Alimony payments are meant to ease the pressure. Alimony is defined as payments made by one spouse to the other following a divorce to help ease the financial transition. Many people confuse alimony with child support, but there’s a distinct difference between the two.
- With alimony, there are no children for whom the paying spouse is responsible; the payments are made solely for support of the other spouse.
- If one spouse was financially responsible for the other during the marriage, i.e. if one held a job and the other didn’t, then alimony is likely to come up during a divorce.
Alimony Options
There are various types of alimony, and both the couple involved and the court should attempt to decide which one suits the situation best.
Lump Sum Alimony
Lump sum alimony is a payment that is given all at once. In other words, the court and the couple work together to calculate an appropriate amount due for a specific time into the future. Typically, the purpose of the lump sum is to provide sufficient support for long enough for the non-supporting spouse to get into a position of producing an acceptable income. The payment is then given all at once, and the receiving spouse is expected to budget it accordingly for the duration of the time period. This type of alimony isn’t often used simply because, as with any receipt of a lump sum of money, it carries a tax penalty that may cause complications for both parties.
Permanent Alimony
Permanent alimony is a much more common choice. In spite of the name, permanent alimony is not necessary permanent; it simply refers to payments that are made regularly over an indefinite amount of time. No end date is set, largely because nobody can be expected to say when the payments will no longer be needed. Eventually, however, as circumstances change, either spouse may go to court and petition to end the payments, either when they are no longer needed by the receiving spouse, or when the paying spouse can no longer afford to send them.
Temporary Alimony
Temporary alimony is similar to permanent, except that an end date is set for the payments. In this situation, the receiving spouse is expected to regain income and/ or financial support by a given date, and the alimony payments are scheduled to stop on that date.
Get Legal Help
Ideally, an alimony settlement is reached that is favorable to both parties. If the couple involved is willing to work together, and if the divorce judge or court is skilled at what they do, an alimony settlement doesn’t have to be complicated. It’s important to know your rights during a divorce, and essential to know your options when it comes to either paying or receiving alimony, so talking to a divorce attorney about how the court will calculate alimony is a good idea.
