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Alimony In Divorce Cases

Family Law

Divorce with a child visitation lawyer can be a very curling and stressful process that many Americans have to deal with. It leaves you with a variety of different emotions, varying from anger, sadness, and judgment. During a divorce proceeding, alimony is issued in order to leave one s spouse financially stable enough to leave the relationship. However, alimony has shown to be a controversial topic in the media, causing many couples to argue over financial disputes according to our friends at Brandy Austin Law Firm, PLLC.

What is alimony?

Alimony or spousal support is a payment that is made to one spouse either during or after a divorce process. In some states, alimony is also called “spousal maintenance.” In Texas, for example, alimony is made to support a spouse temporarily financially and not long term. Alimony’s payment is organized around the length of time a couple was married. It’s also important to note that a spouse has to qualify to receive alimony from the court. The qualifications are solely based on the number of years one spouse has invested in the relationship.

What are the qualifications for alimony?

During divorce proceedings, either one of the couples can request spousal maintenance. The court will then decide whether any couples qualify for spousal support. For the requirement, alimony is only rewarded if the spouse doesn’t have enough property in their name or lacks the resources to be financially stable after the divorce. Some of these requirements for alimony include if one of the spouses has been convicted of an act of violence against the other spouse or children within the last 2 years, doesn’t have enough income to support themselves financially, are physical and mental disability, has been married for more than 10 years, have a biological child that has a mental or physical disability, or was a sponsored immigrant.

What are the types of alimony?

In many states, there is more than one form of alimony for couples. The first type is temporary spousal support. This kind of support is only given while a divorce is being processed. The temporary support typically lasts until the divorce is finalized, but sometimes, a judge can extend it. Temporary support usually requested by the lower-income spouse. If that person makes the requirements, the court will grant the request to help them. The next kind of alimony is Contractual alimony. The judge does not mandate contractual maintenance, but instead, the couple both agree to the terms of the support agreement. In Contractual alimony, the couple both mutually decide the set amount of payment and time duration for the alimony. Once both parties have agreed, they will submit the document to the court for approval. And the last form of alimony is court-ordered maintenance. Court-ordered maintenance is when both parties fail to come up with an agreement for the alimony. In this case, the court will create the setup for the alimony so they can provide support to the spouse. Based on state laws, the person requesting the maintenance has provided records that they cannot financially support themselves and failed in any previous attempts. From there, the court will decide whether or not to approve the request for court-order maintenance.

How long does alimony last for?

The court requires the judges to organize the alimony based on factors surrounding the couple. For example, a mother can be awarded alimony if they have a child with a mental disability. There the court will review the situation and form a support order. Some support orders can last for 5 years if the couple has been married for more than 10 years, 5 years if the couple has been together for less than 20 years, 7 years if the couple has been together for less than 30 years or10 years if the couple has been married for 30+ years.

How much does alimony offer money wise?

It depends on your state. In Texas, there is a limit on the amount of money required by support orders.The support order can not extend over 5000$ per month or 20% of their income.

If you are facing a legal custody battle over your child, contact a family law lawyer near you for help immediately.