To Pay or Not to Pay: Is Alimony the Answer?

Cheryl never wanted her marriage to end. When Steve, her husband of eight years, returned home at late hours, the mother of three children knew something was amiss.

A high ranking military officer, Steve often traveled internationally. He took his family with him around the world. One trip led him to eventually leave Cheryl for a female officer he commanded.

A housewife, with little with a high school diploma and little professional training, Cheryl was faced with collecting alimony and child support. The hefty funds left her shattered family comfortable, while Steve started another one.

As the years progressed, and their two sons and a daughter grew to young adults. Cheryl received the phone call she never anticipated. Steve was cutting off her alimony payments. His gruff, impatient tone spoke volumes about his indifference toward her well-being.

Within the United States, alimony laws differ from state-to-state. However, its purpose is clear. When one spouse makes less money than the other, alimony payments are typically awarded following a divorce or separation. Some spousal support agreements are negotiated, while others are mandated by a judicial court ruling. The responsibility of paying alimony is just as crucial as child support. Details of both parties' personal lives can be vividly displayed in order to argue their case in the husband or wife's favor. Our law firm can help you settle alimony cases or raise questions about existing support than should be increased.

When prenuptial agreements are lacking, and divorce becomes a reality, alimony payments take center stage in divorce court. In most alimony cases the annual amounts and the time periods funds are paid cannot be set in stone. The modification and enforcement of alimony is not always a surety that follows the court mandated rulings. To learn more about the realities of alimony read the Time, Inc. article

There are hundreds of thousands of alimony recipients within the United States. However, only a small percentage are men. The large gap is due to households that are primarily headed by women. Another reason is some men cannot pride fully accept money from women as their primary source of income. In some cities alimony is a set amount based on income and how long the marriage lasted. To learn more read the Forbes magazine article

For some, alimony is a life line of care for a spouse suffering with a terminal illness such as lupus, cancer, diabetes or stroke. For others alimony is a stepping stone that leads to retraining and education, knowing that one day the payments will end. Although the case for alimony is often won or lost in court, the long-term benefits are a continuous battle as husbands and wives take their battling positions to ensure their case comes out on top.