A common reason many people stay in unhappy and unfulfilling marriages is that they’ve gotten used to a comfortable lifestyle that they’re afraid they’ll lose if they divorce. That can be especially true if one spouse’s income largely pays for that lifestyle. This can be true whether a couple has many millions of dollars and multiple homes around the country or lives comfortably in the Clearwater suburbs.
If you’re the lesser-earning spouse or perhaps don’t work outside the home at all, do you have the right to seek a divorce settlement that will let you continue to live something close to your marital standard of living? That depends on several factors.
What factors can a judge consider in determining alimony?
If a couple can’t agree on a spousal support (alimony) settlement, a judge will determine it based on a multitude of factors, including:
- How long the couple has been married
- What each spouse’s earning potential is
- What the lesser-earning spouse contributed to the marriage (putting their spouse through medical school, being a full-time parent and so forth)
- The “standard of living established during the marriage and the anticipated needs and necessities of life for each party after the entry of the final judgment.”
- The “extent to which the obligee’s available financial resources limit the obligee’s ability for self-support, either in whole or in part.”
Say, for example, a couple was married for many years. After working to put their spouse through medical school or maybe providing unpaid labor for their start-up business, that spouse wants to be able to continue living in the marital standard of living they helped build, but at this point in their life, they can’t build a successful career on their own. If the higher-earning spouse can afford to help them continue in that standard without sacrificing their own, they may have a solid case.
Alimony isn’t the only way to help “even things out” in a divorce. If a couple has significant shared assets like homes, vehicles, boats and investments, the property division agreement can also be used to do that. By getting experienced legal guidance as early as possible when divorce is on the horizon, Florida spouses can work to protect their rights and interests.