Question 1

How Often is Alimony Awarded in Alabama?

Accepted Answer

Spousal support is not awarded in all Alabama divorces. In situations where both partners possess comparable earnings and earning potential, alimony is often withheld. The judge has complete discretion over the issue of whether to award alimony. In general, for spousal support to be awarded in Alabama there must be a showing of entitlement to spousal support and that the payor has the ability to pay.

Question 2

How is Alimony Calculated in Alabama?

Accepted Answer

Alabama’s divorce laws don’t provide a fixed equation for calculating spousal support. Instead, the sum of alimony hinges on the beneficiary spouse’s requirements and the paying spouse’s capacity to furnish financial assistance. In cases in which spousal support is awarded, the amount of maintenance is determined by the judge. Some of the things a judge might consider when a party requests maintenance include: spousal support is completely at the discretion of the court, a showing of actual need by one spouse and the ability to pay off the other spouse, the award of distribution of property and value of each spouse’s estate, the length of the marriage, marital misconduct by either spouse, earning ability of the spouses, future prospects of the spouses, spouses’ health and age, either spouse’s estate, any award to the non-covered spouse of retirement of the other spouse, other property possessed by each spouse, including type, value, and source, the spouses’ standard of living, the potential to maintain that standard once the divorce ends, their wealth, careers, or social status, and any other facts or factors the court thinks are relevant to the determination. Every divorce case is different. The judge might consider other factors in addition to these when dealing with the issue of alimony in your divorce. The court is not required to consider any or all of these factors. It is completely up to the Court as to what factors are considered and how much weight each factor considered will receive. If any or all factors are considered, the weight given to each factor is, again, solely within the court’s discretion. This results in inconsistency in awards and great difficulty in determining the exposure or level of entitlement to spousal support.

Topic: Alimony

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