Page 57 - Family Law Services

Temporary

Temporary alimony is that amount paid after filing the petition and before the final judgment and is
sometimes referred to as pendente lite alimony. The standard for an award of temporary alimony is
based on needs as fixed by the parties’ current standard of living and current ability to pay. This amount
can be agreed upon by the parties or ordered by the court. These payments may be either taxable and de-
ductible or nontaxable and nondeductible by agreement of the parties. Refer to state law for further
guidance.

Permanent

The purpose of permanent periodic alimony is to provide for the needs and necessities of life for a for-
mer spouse as they were established during the marriage of the parties. The criteria to be used in estab-
lishing this need include the parties’ earning ability, age, health, education, duration of the marriage,
standard of living enjoyed during its course, and the value of the parties’ estates. Many times, this type
of spousal support may be modifiable after the award if there is a change in the circumstances of the par-
ties. Such circumstances may include changes in income or health or other significant variations in the
needs of either of the parties. The changes in circumstance are defined by local statute and case law and
vary from state to state. In a number of states, permanent alimony may cease on the retirement of the
payor and particularly if the parties’ retirement assets have already been divided. In a number of states,
alimony may be automatically terminated upon the remarriage or cohabitation of the recipient spouse.

Rehabilitative

Rehabilitative spousal support is awarded for limited periods of time to provide income for a period to
allow an individual to acquire education or training towards becoming self-supporting. Support under a
rehabilitative plan may supplement the spousal support plan. The expenditure for rehabilitative spousal
support is sometimes justified by showing that the economic recovery through increased earnings of the
rehabilitated party exceeds the cost of the rehabilitation. Depending on state law, a rehabilitative plan
may be a prerequisite for any rehabilitative alimony. An award must have a termination date, and the
length of the marriage may not be an issue.

Reimbursement

Spousal support can be used to reimburse a party for an expenditure of funds made during a marriage or
to compensate one party for property awarded to the other. Typically, reimbursement is a specific
amount not subject to modification. Depending on the jurisdiction, examples of reimbursement could in-
clude the repayment of the marital estate for payments to support a spouse’s separate property or for
marital funds expended to pay income taxes on separate property income.

Limited Duration

In a number of states, the statutes or the court may limit the term of the spousal support payments. Juris-
dictions may determine the period of time over which the payments are to be made based on the length
of the marriage or similar factors. Courts sometimes award this type of spousal support to enable indi-
viduals to rehabilitate themselves back into the workforce.

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