There are several types of alimony that the court may grant to a spouse
during the pendency of divorce actions as well as at the time final decision is
made which the party may agree to. These
fall into the following categories:
permanent, rehabilitive, or reimbursement.
The first is Pendente
Lite, or Temporary Alimony. These are
alimony awards that are granted during the pendency of a divorce action that
provides temporary financial relief to a spouse. A court will usually make this type of
temporary order of alimony only if the payor spouse is served with a notice, is
physically present in court, and is given an opportunity to have his or her
side heard in court. One or both spouses
have the opportunity to relinquish or waive their right to ask for
alimony. If alimony is not awarded in
the original divorce decree, neither party to come back to court for a
modification of alimony. Most judges
will question both spouses to determine if they have full knowledge of a waiver
and its consequences, as well as the spouses' lawyers should do likewise to
make sure the clients know any legal ramifications before going to court. Either spouse has the option of asking for a
nominal alimony in an amount of $1.00 per year.
This serves the purpose of allowing either party to protect his or her
right to return to court in an event that there is a change in circumstances,
should there be a need for alimony in the future, if there is no need for at
time of pendency.
A second type of
alimony is Bridge-the-Gap Alimony. This
is a short-term lump-sum alimony awarded to a spouse that allows a spouse the
opportunity to transition between married life and single status. This is awarded based on the traditional
concept of alimony where there is a need versus ability to pay. It does not terminate upon death or
remarriage. It is designed for
short-term, one-time expenses, like rental security deposit, moving expenses,
buying a car to get to and from work, or for deposits for utilities, that are
necessary when a spouse lacks credit of any kind.
A third type of
alimony is Permanent Alimony. This is a
court-ordered payment made to a spouse on regular, or periodic basis. These payments usually terminate upon death,
remarriage, or co-habitation of the other spouse as granted in the court
order. Permanent alimony is not usually
granted today due to women being in the workforce and having marketable skills
for employment that still allows them to be self-sufficient. Spouses likely to be awarded this type of
alimony are those who have been in long-term marriages, those who have
difficulty obtaining marketable job skills, those with a disability, or who
have trouble find suitable work to
support themselves.
Another type of
alimony is Reimbursement Alimony. This
is usually granted when a spouse obtained a professional or advanced degree
during the marriage, leaving the other spouse at a disadvantage. Most courts award this type of alimony to
compensate a non-degreed spouse money or property for his or her contribution
that led the other spouse to obtain a degree in order to earn a substantial
income. The non-degreed spousemay have
helped pay for tuition, supported the family while the student spouse was in
school, or relocated or put off his or her education in hopes of a better
standard of living. It is usually
non-modifiable in order to fully compensate the non-degreed spouse for his or
her contribution.
In the event that
alimony needs to be increased or decreased, the parties must go back to
court. The party seeking the
modification must request the court to modify the original order. The moving party must show proof that a
substantial change occurred since the date of original order. Permanent alimony can be modified if there is
substantial change in circumstances; remarriage or co-habitation of unmarried
parties who share expenses, automatically terminates permanent alimony in some
jurisidictions.
The tax consequences
of alimony awarded to a spouse is considered a form of income to the
spouse. It is taxable to the recipient
and a deduction to the payor. A payor
spouse who has high earnings is in an advantageous position. It is important to have social security
numbers from attorney's client no matter if they are the recipient or
payor. The recipient spouse should be
reminded to pay quarterly estimated taxes in order to avoid the huge tax burden
at the end of the year.
In conclusion, the
different types of alimony were created to alleviate the financial burden in
the event the marriage breaks down.
References
Luppino, Grace A.
& Miller, Justine Fitzgerald. Family
Law Practice: The Paralegal's Guide. Pearson Education Group, Inc. Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River, NJ. 3rd Ed.
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