Alimony is usually a hotly contested issue in a Pasco County, Florida divorce. Spouses don’t want to pay it, and in many cases the spouses who are awarded it do not think the alimony amount is enough.
In Florida, there are six types of alimony: permanent, temporary, bridge-the-gap, durational, rehabilitative and lump sum. In deciding whether to award alimony, and how much, the court takes a lot of factors into consideration. Some of those factors include:
- How long the marriage lasted. If the marriage lasted a long time, alimony is more likely to be awarded.
- The standard of living during the marriage. Courts will take into account the value of the marital home, cars, and other assets to determine the standard of living the parties had while married.
- The financial resources of each party. Alimony is based on the need of one spouse and the other spouse’s ability to pay, so the court will look at the spouses’ financial conditions, including non-marital assets.
- Each party’s contribution to the marriage. This includes not only financial contributions, but also contributions in child care, education, and helping the other spouse to build a career.
- Each party’s responsibilities regarding minor children. If there are special circumstances involving the children, this may be taken into account.
- The earning capacity, educational level and employability of the parties. The court will determine if a spouse would have the ability to support himself or herself with specialized training or education, for example, and may award alimony to help with that.
- All sources of income available to each party.
- The age and physical condition of each party. If a person is in poor health and is unable to support himself or herself, alimony is more likely to be awarded.
- Any other factor that should be considered to make the alimony award fair.
