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Wednesday, 17 December 2008 04:17 |
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Alimony is the legal term for spousal support – or the money one spouse is ordered to pay the other following a divorce. The purpose of alimony is to provide the lower-income earning spouse with money needed for living expenses over and above any money provided by child support. One must understand, however, that alimony and child support are two very different topics. On the one hand, child support is paid for the care of the children and is calculated based on a strict mathematical formula. Spousal support, on the other hand, is for the benefit of the spouse and its awarding is based on the discretion of the judge. The Factors of Alimony Although a judge has a significant amount of discretion in awarding alimony – and every state’s laws differ – typically certain factors will be considered. In most cases, these factors include: - A party’s ability to earn money, both now and in the future
 - Respective ages
- Overall health
- Length of the marriage
- Property involved
- Conduct of the parties
The general rule is that alimony will only be awarded where one spouse has a history of being economically dependent on the other for the course of the marriage. The Benefits of Alimony At first glance, alimony may seem like something that should be avoided at all costs. But, as your Michigan Spousal Support Attorney will tell you, there are benefits to being ordered to pay alimony. Although your Michigan Family Law Lawyer will walk you through your specific case, benefits often include the ability to deduct all paid alimony from one’s taxable income.
Picture courtesy of curious_spider of flickr
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 20 December 2008 08:48 )
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