While each state’s law varies, the following is based on Maryland law. Historically, alimony, also known as spousal support, was meant to compensate spouses after a divorce – mostly women – who gave up their careers during their marriage to raise children. Following changes to the law in the 1970s and early1980s, alimony could be awarded to either spouse regardless of gender and became designed to make the economically dependent spouse in a divorce self-supporting. It was not meant to equalise the parties’ incomes. When the terms of the parties’ divorce are determined by a court, an award of alimony is separate from an award of child support. When the parties resolve the issues of their divorce by agreement and enter into a marital settlement agreement, they usually have more flexibility to set the terms of financial support between the spouses. During the course of the parties’ divorce, the court can order pendente lite or interim alimony paid by one spouse to the other. Such an award only lasts until the court issues a final judgment of absolute divorce. To make such an award, the court need only consider the recipient’s need for such alimony and the paying party’s financial ability to pay alimony. At the divorce trial, the court can award either rehabilitative alimony or indefinite alimony. Unlike child support, which is determined by a mathematical calculation, an alimony award is determined by a judge using a series of statutory factors such as the length of the parties’ marriage, the parties’ respective ages, health, education, the standard of living the parties enjoyed during their marriage, the financial needs and resources of the parties, the ability of the party seeking alimony to becoming wholly or partially self-supporting, and the time necessary for that party to gain sufficient education or training to enable that party to find suitable employment, among others. It is important to remember that among the factors that the court considers is whether the person being asked to pay alimony can afford it. Even if a party is entitled to receive alimony, if the other party cannot afford to pay it and all other financial obligations, a court will not award alimony. An award of rehabilitative alimony 70 LAWYER MONTHLY MAY 2023 A Guide to Alimony Disputes Thought Leader In the US, the award of alimony can often be one of the more contentious outcomes of a divorce, and as such is of keen interest to family law practitioners. In this article, we hear from experienced family law attorney Thomas Stahl as he takes a closer look at alimony, the common factors involved in alimonyrelated disputes and how such difficulties can be averted.
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