In comparison, spousal maintenance is paid to an ex-partner, in their own right, in addition to any child maintenance. It is always important to take legal advice when looking at financial arrangements upon divorce or separation, so that your individual circumstances can be taken into consideration. Home News What you need to know about spousal maintenance. What you need to know about spousal maintenance 01 Mar Author Laura Bell Associate.
Tags: family law. Get in touch Get in contact with one of our legal experts today. Or, you may have agreed that your supported spouse's remarriage will not terminate spousal support.
If your judgment contains specific language about how remarriage affects your alimony obligation, you're likely bound by those terms. If it's not addressed, then you'll have to look to your state's laws. Note: this chart does not address past-due or lump-sum alimony payments.
There are other exceptions to these general rules, so if you have specific questions about remarriage and alimony in your state, consult a local family law attorney.
The obligation to pay future alimony is terminated when the supported spouse remarries, but paying spouse must file petition or motion for termination of support.
Cohabitation is not enough to terminate alimony. Paying spouse must file a motion to modify support and show a substantial and continuing change in circumstances, provide evidence relating to the economic nature of the cohabitation, and prove that ex-spouse's support needs have changed. The obligation to pay future alimony is terminated automatically when the supported spouse remarries.
The paying spouse doesn't need to file a motion to terminate support. Paying spouse must file a motion to modify support and show a substantial change in ex-spouse's financial circumstances that justifies reducing support. The obligation to pay future alimony is terminated when the supported spouse remarries or establishes a civil union. Paying spouse must file a motion to terminate support and show that cohabitation eliminates ex-spouse's financial need.
The obligation to pay future alimony is terminated when the supported spouse remarries. The paying spouse may stop payments immediately, without a court order ending alimony. The paying spouse must file a motion to modify support and show the couple is in fact cohabiting, has a financial relationship, and that a significant change in the supported spouse's financial circumstances justifies reducing support. The obligation to pay future alimony ends when the supported spouse remarries.
The paying spouse may stop payments immediately—without a court order ending alimony. Cohabitation is not enough to terminate support. The paying spouse must file a motion to terminate support, prove the cohabitation, and show how the supported spouse's financial situation has improved as a result. If supported spouse's financial situation hasn't improved the court may refuse to terminate alimony. The paying spouse doesn't have to return to court—payments may simply stop as of the date of the marriage.
Although we would have an equitable split at divorce, my wife feels it unfair that after I have paid off the mortgage in 13 years, then I will have that capital sum more than her.
She also does not like the house for? As you say we cannot give specific advice here and given the detail of your circumstances it would be dangerous for us to do so. In my opinion you need to seek bespoke advice in respect of your specific case. Colin — please if you can keep me posted on how you go here.
Good luck. This is an eleven year marriage with two children. If the CSA calculated payments are enough to keep the children, and for the other party to maintain a reasonable lifestyle, and even save a little, does it matter what each earns. On a similar note, if one party decided to return to work in a lower paid part time job, despite the protestations of the other party, does it matter, or could they be asked to work full time? In a controlling and manipulative relationship, which are quoted and accepted as the reasons for divorce, are the actions of the controlling party in the marriage considered?
Dear Marc. As you will see we are unable to give specific advice through this forum. Both parties will be expected to maximise their earning capacities, subject of course to any constraints such as health. The basis of the divorce nor the conduct of the parties are likely to have any impact on the award. Hi, do i have to pay my wife spousal maintenance even if she commits adultery with other men, and is in full time employment, we have one child who is 19 who still lives at home and is himself in full time employment.
Dear Ian, thank you for your comment. I would recommend that you seek advice from a Resolution lawyer as soon as possible. My mum has been receiving a small monthly maintenance from her ex since hey got divorced 5 years ago. She barely survives on it as it is. He supported her while they were married. She has no other income. Is there anything she can do? Thank you for your enquiry on behalf of your mother. I must presume that the small monthly maintenance you refer to is spousal maintenance ordered by the court.
But it may be the case that the divorce took place without any financial orders being made by a court. A claim may also be brought by the children of the deceased although it should be noted that it is much more difficult to bring a successful claim if you are a financially independent and able-bodied adult child. These cases are complicated and turn upon a precise understanding of the facts so it is hard to make any observations in the absence of more information.
However, I have posted on the subject of the Inheritance Act on my Divorce Finance Toolkit website and I think the contents of my response there may be of assistance. At the very least, your mother should contact whoever she believes may be the executor of her late ex-husband to enquire whether he made a Will or not and to notify that person in writing that she was a dependent of the deceased whose interests should be taken into account. My blog post on the Divorce Finance Toolkit suggests some further steps your mother may wish to take.
It is important to note that any claimant under the Inheritance Act has six months from the date of a grant of representation to make a claim against an estate. Unfortunately i married a German and we are getting divorced in the UK, she is trying to apply German law in a UK court referring to the Hague convention.
She lives in the family home, has all the family assets and car etc but refuses to work and is unwilling to have an amicable split. Any advice on what options i have and how true her statement is? There is no chance of mediation or resolve. On the face of it, if the court in England and Wales is dealing with the case then the law in this jurisdiction will apply. The court will assess need and wherewithal to pay. The court will consider both child and spousal maintenance. However, you should seek comprehensive legal advice on your situation as a whole.
I have been told that my ex husband should have been paying me spousal maintenance,is this true? We are not together now but i have been told that he should still have been paying?? Payment of spousal maintenance can either be agreed by consent or else determined by the court following a full assessment of all the circumstances of your case. If a final financial order was not made at the time of your separation it may still be possible to make a financial claim against your ex husband to include payment of spousal maintenance likely by way of a capitalised lump sum.
However this is only possible if you have not since remarried and it will be harder to succeed as these cases are highly unusual. You may be interested to read the Supreme Court judgement of Vince v Wyatt [] UKSC 14 which sets out the policy behind this area of law in some detail. You shall need to take independent legal advice on your specific circumstances.
I am recently divorced, u have two children to my ex husband one of which is disabled. My ex husband somehow managed to only pay CSA intermittently. I worked within the NHS but I had to give up my career to look after our son as he needs a lot of care.
Now after 6 years and trying to get a divorce he divorced me as he wanted to re-marry. How much would it cost me to apply for spousal maintainance? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Dear Helen Thank you for your query. As you will have read we are not able to give specific advice to individual circumstances within this forum. However from the information you have provided I would certainly recommend that you obtain some legal advice regarding a possible spousal maintenance claim.
It is not clear whether you dealt with any financial claims on divorce and so legal advice would definitely be prudent. Unfortunately I cannot provide information with regard to costs — you will need to speak to a lawyer about this as rates vary from firm to firm. Thank you very much for your reply, I think I will look into this further.
As we did not have a financial separation. I appreciate your time. I am a British National My husband Indian. Will I need to divorce first in order to file for a Spousal maintenance. Before you are able to obtain a financial order for maintenance you or your husband would first need to have commenced divorce proceedings in England. If there is a risk that your husband may issue divorce proceedings in India, depending on your circumstances and where your husband is living habitually resident then you may wish to petition for divorce in England without delay.
Whilst there is a mechanism in England for spouses who have been divorced overseas and who have a connection to England to access financial remedies available in this jurisdiction, it is much more limited and there are far more hurdles to overcome before you are able to pursue a claim. We hope our observations, which do not constitute legal advice, are helpful. I have been separated from my wife for over 10 years now. I have paid half the mortgage and an agreed maintenance amount for my son throughout this time.
I have helped out with the house and paid additional sums when she needed it. I have had my son most weekends and never claimed money back if he was with me. She has only ever worked part time since we split as she got more from benefits than if she worked full time. This of course will end in August and she now realises she will be short of money. She is capable of working full time and our son can live with me if she cannot afford it. She has never contributed to my pension and has her own so why would she get any?
I am sure there is a history that will have a relevance and it would be impossible to help without understanding it. My suggestion is you should seek independent advice as soon as possible to review your options. Choosing a family lawyer who is a member of Resolution would be a great starting point.
Of course we are happy to assist if you would like to contact us direct. Hi there my husband walked out on myself and our 8 year old son although I and my son live in the martial home it is all in his name and is paying the mortgage and bills at the moment I was and still am a stay at home mum now on benefits I get no maintenance either for my son or myself am I entitled to either?
Many thanks. Dear Lorraine. Thank you for reading the blog and responding. Separation brings with it many challenges and anxieties and worries about money and financial support are commonplace. Please look to instruct a member of Resolution and check out if they work with Family Consultants in helping to support clients through what can be a really worrying time.
Start creating a budget of what you are spending and what you need. That will help understand what shortfall needs to be met. You should consider applying to the CMS but my view is get advice as a starting point. I hope this helps. They had no joint finances or house and their joint debt of?
How come the court will take into account my financials to look at how much of our household I can support to allow him to pay more in spousal maintenance. This is total contradiction. How come the law thinks my partner should have a share of my income to ensure he can afford spousal maintenance.. Dear Victoria. This is why we advise seeking bespoke advice in respect of individual specific circumstances. As you will have read the issue of spousal maintenance is complex.
What I can say is that the court does not presume that your partner can have a share of your income or that you will support him. Some judges do allow spousal maintenance to be stopped if the other party cohabits, particularly in circumstances where this has been agreed between the parties. I hope this helps but I reiterate that your partner should seek legal advice as soon as possible. Hi, i have been divorced for 4 years after a 14 year relationship and under 1 year of marriage. My ex is now seeking a financial maintenance order.
I pay regular CSA payments. In answer to your question; yes, the length of your marriage may be relevant to your ex wife? Other important factors are your respective ages, incomes and earning capacities and financial needs, i. Although I am unable to provide you with any specific legal advice, given your short marriage and the length of your separation it may not be reasonable to expect you to provide maintenance to your ex wife, this is assuming she needs additional support and also assuming you have the funds to meet your own needs and meet some or all of any shortfall your wife may have.
However, if your ex wife is unable to meet her monthly expenses and that of any child of the family, as a direct result of certain decisions you have both made during the marriage, e.
Then irrespective of the length of your marriage it may be reasonable to expect you to provide her with a certain level of financial support for a period of time, subject to it being affordable. I suggest you seek further independent legal advice. Thank you for your comment Helen. Determining the level and term of spousal maintenance largely depends on the needs of the receiving party and the financial means of the paying party.
I am not able to provide you with any specific legal advice, however if you are unable to meet your day to day expenses on your current income, and if the disparity between your income and your husband? Any earlier payments will not necessarily set a precedent if the amount is insufficient to meet your income needs.
You refer to your ex possibly having spent his savings on solicitors: I would just observe that in the vast majority of cases maintenance is paid out of income. Savings what lawyers refer to as capital is usually irrelevant for questions of maintenance.
Capital assets may be relevant for other claims that you could make against your ex but that is an entirely different question. I recommend that you seek independent legal advice from a specialist family solicitor. Dear Edith. Thanks for reading our post and commenting.
Much will depend on whether financial claims were dealt with when you divorced. You may want to review matters with another solicitor once you have this information if your claims have ended. If so, you should consider seeking advice from a solicitor who is a member of Resolution. I was divorced in and court ruled for maintenance for my child and separate maintenance for my ex wife. My wife claimed she was unable to work due to health and having a young child, however she has worked full time for the last 15 years.
She also has a partner and have been together for 6 years. He regularly stays at hers but as yet they have decided not to move in together full time. I have now been made redundant at the age of I have enough money saved to probably see out my retirement but not if I have to use my savings to pay my ex wife. She is still in full time employment. Where do I stand if I wax to stop her payments. Dear William.
All spousal maintenance orders are variable and it is open to either you or your former wife to ask for the payment levels to be altered if circumstances change. I would suggest that in your circumstances you should be looking to apply to the court for a downward variation of the maintenance although you should explain your change of circumstances to your former wife to see whether a variation can be agreed by? If not you can apply to the court to decide. You should seek legal advice as soon as possible.
You may want to consider Mediation as your first step and a way of opening up the discussions with your former wife. And would I be entitled to any maintaince as I had to move house 7 times in 10 years to follow his career, also we have been separated 18 months, have I left it too late? Dear Claire, Thank you for your question. Spousal maintenance is only payable where parties are or have been married. Unmarried couples who have separated do not have the same legal rights as married couples who are divorcing.
This can be a useful tool for couples who have lived together but never married and have children together, especially if the other parent has assets or money.
However, this is a complex area of the law and you should seek expert advice. There are no strict timescales to adhere to before making a claim. I would like to marry my new partner but concerned her salary be taken into account for monthly payments as we cohabit I regularly pay CSA, will this be affected if I remarry? Dear James. If you are paying child support not spousal maintenance through the CSA now the Child Maintenance Service then your payments will not be affected by your re-marriage.
We were married for 15 years and re mortgaged a couple of times firstly for house improvements and secondly to extend the term of the mortgage as I took a job with less money after a nervous breakdown. In the last 8 years my health has deteriorated so that I am now unable to work and am living on disability benefits.
The DWP will not pay the interest on the mortgage as the last one was not for home improvements and I have no receipts of the work that was done years ago. We are just starting the mediation process so I have not yet had any legal advice. Dear Patricia. Thank you for your query. Mediation is a process FLP are strong advocates of. That said you should consider getting advice before the process starts — and as the process continues — to understand the likely issues and your rights.
Your need for financial support may be there but it may not be affordable for your former husband. Those issues will need to be reviewed following the information that should be gathered during the Mediation process.
I recommend getting some initial advice from a Resolution member as they should adopt a non confrontational approach. Understanding your entitlement and options is vital. I would suggest that you create a detailed budget showing what you need, what income you have and what the shortfall is so that you can discuss this with your advisor.
I separated from my husband in July last year. We continued to live in the same property separate bedrooms for the sake of our 3 year old twins. I go to the house every morning to take the twins to nursery, and pick them up in the evening and take them back to the house. I stay there until they are in bed then go back to the flat. He is now claiming the child benefit, but he is not paying anything to me — I am looking for more working hours, but cannot work full time because of the nursery timings.
Does he have to pay spousal maintenance in these circumstances? In the event of any application you may make to the court for ancillary relief, including the payment of spousal maintenance, the court must consider all the circumstances of your case with the first consideration being given to the welfare of any minor child.
If you are unable to work full time because of the arrangement you and your husband have agreed relating to the children and if you are unable to meet your monthly living expenses, then a court may consider it appropriate that your husband provide you with a level of support providing this is affordable until you are able to enhance your earning capacity and become financially self-sufficient.
Furthermore, despite the fact that your former matrimonial home was owned by your husband prior to your marriage it does not necessarily mean that you have no beneficial interest in the property. On separation it is important that your housing needs are also met, although it is worth bearing in mind that at the moment this shall likely equate to a one bedroom property as the twins are not currently staying overnight with you.
On a final point, it is important that matters relating to the children and finances are kept separate. At first glance, if, prior to your separation, you cared for the twins on a day-to-day basis, and it appears that you continue to play an important role in their lives, there seems no obvious reason why you should be prevented from having the children overnight at your flat — providing your accommodation is adequate for their needs. I recommend that you obtain some independent legal advice from a Resolution-accredited family solicitor.
We separated last July.. He earns around 90, a year.. I earn My solicitor says I would be. I would just like another opinion please. Dear Leanne. Thank you for your post. We would need to understand more about your circumstances but the idea that maintenance should be ignored does not fit with the circumstances you have described. Determining the level and term of spousal maintenance will depend on your needs and the financial means of your husband.
You need to ask your solicitor to advise on how much you can ask for and for how long. Hello, thank you for raising this topic. My situation is as follows: I am engaged to a man who is divorced for over 8 years now from his ex-wife and back then two young children. While the salary of my partner increased since the divorce, he expects that it will stagnate soon if not go down he is 55 and thinks of retiring at We received advise, that he should give his ex the heads-up and informing her in writing that he expects to retire at 65 and he will therefore not be able to afford to keep the level of payments up — way before actually reducing payments when circumstances are changing.
We have to expect that she will try to fight it and I wonder if a new assessment of his financial situation may take my salary and savings into account as well if we were married. If not directly, indirectly as they court may find that my husband is still having a good lifestyle since I am still working I am 12 years younger? Hope this makes sense. Thank you in advance. Thank you for your comment Isabella. As your fianc? On such an application the court shall consider all the circumstances of the case including the welfare of any minor children of the family.
In the event that you and your fianc? My wife had an affair and I left the martial home and the children as I thought it was for the best. She has since moved him into the marital home within a month of separation. I am still paying for the mortgage even though I am no longer living at the property. I am mature fulltime student with no financial income.
Would I be eligible for spousal maintenance even though her need seems to be greater as she has the children. It may be worth getting some initial advice and perhaps suggesting that you and your wife attend mediation with a view to exploring financial issues. That would include how the mortgage is going to be paid going forward, what contribution should be made by her partner and so forth.
If she is unable to meet her needs and there will be no prospect of financial support towards you; the fact that she is looking after the children and gender will not determine the issue. It is based on need and ability to pay.
To understand all the circumstances of your case it would be important to get advice as an early stage. We wish you all the very best. I am in the process of dissolving my civil partnership, my ex is not currently working and I only work part time, I also have custody of our daughter, can my ex claim for spousal maintenance from me?
We think it would be good idea if you get some initial advice from a solicitor who specialises in family law and who is a member of Resolution. I would imagine?
If it is, then it is inconceivable that you would have to pay any maintenance. As with every case, it is all case specific and that is why it is important to get some advice to reassure yourself as to your position.
Do think carefully about the model being used to try and resolve matters. Involving a Family Consultant at an early stage where children are involved to manage the separation in the most child focused and sensitive way possible is, in our experience, invaluable. Hi, I have been with my husband for 31 years and married for nearly He has been paying the mortgage for all this time as had a successful career while I raised our 3 children who are now in their late teens.
I have not worked as such in this time only working a little bit from home which does not generate a liveable wage. We are going through a rough time and we both feel we need to seperate. He has now stopped paying me a monthly allowance and expects me now to contribute towards the mortgage and utilities etc. There is no way that I can afford to do this.
With the proceeds split down the middle I will not be able to buy a house as I will not be able to get a mortgage ; only rent whereas he still will be able to get a mortgage and live as comfortably as before. Given the circumstances will I be entitled to more?
Dear Sarah. It sounds like a very worrying time for you. The issues you have raised are wide and need to be looked at as a whole. I would suggest that you meet with a Resolution family law specialist so that you can review the options available to you and to get advice and guidance on what the future might look like for you and your family.
As you will have seen from the article,? My husband and I divorced 5 years ago and I was bullied in to signing the documents so quickly that I never received any legal advice. My ex is now remarried and living in a large 4 bed house with his new wife and baby whilst I and our 2 children live in a small 2 bedroom rented property.
I have recently made the decision to seek legal advice as I have great concerns over my financial future as I work part time due to having the children 10 and 6 in a low paid job with a charity. He has now agreed to meet with me face to face to discuss it but I desperately need some indication of what to tell him. Thank you! Dear Corrie. It is not clear whether what you signed was a Consent Order in which case it may be difficult for you to re-open the financial issues. Having said that if your solicitor has sent him a Form E it indicates to me that a formal final agreement was not in fact entered in to.
Rather than meet with your former husband I would suggest that Mediation would be a more appropriate first step. If he continues to refuse to provide financial disclosure voluntarily then you need to consider whether an application to the court for a financial remedy order may be appropriate.
However, it is always advisable to consider other options before involving the court if possible. It is impossible for us to provide advice without all the facts but it is important that you address all the financial issues which will include spousal maintenance and pensions.
Hello, Myself and my wife have been separated for over a year and still no signs of any divorce starting, Am i required to give her maintenance money? There is no legal obligation on you to pay your wife maintenance in the absence of an agreement or court order. It is impossible for us to advise whether you should be paying maintenance or not as we do not have all the facts and financial information.
I would advise you to seek advice in respect of your options as it may be beneficial for you to consider commencing divorce proceedings sooner rather than later. I am living with my partner for 2 years we have a 1 years old son together. He was married had 2 children with his wife and one child in wedlock which he now have 4 children. My question is, I am stressing the fact that he is paying spousal mainentance to his ex-wife and child maintenance which i would like this spousal mainentance to be stopped , currently he is living a good life with me as i have a good job and earn a decent amount and he is not getting much out of his salary and still needs to support his other kids.
He is not open to what the agreement was when they divorced and its not easy getting anything out of him as he always seems to be lying to me not to lose me.
He wants to get married but i cannot bare sharring his salary with another woman and have asked him to go back to court to stop this spousal maintenance as he can barely support himself.
Will the court take my Salary into consideration and combined with his to make this difficult decision. If your partner is finding it difficult to meet spousal maintenance payments to his ex-wife then, in the absence of agreement, he has the option of applying to the court for either a decrease in the amount he pays or for payments to stop completely.
To determine the level of spousal maintenance, the court will consider the income of both parties as well as the standard of living they enjoyed as a couple. Spousal maintenance can be varied at any point if circumstances change.
Family mediation will need to be considered in most cases if you cannot agree and wish to apply to the court. They will consider your assets and income in order to make any decision. What is spousal maintenance? How long does spousal maintenance last for Spousal maintenance will last for as long as you can both agree that it is required, or if you cannot agree, by a court order.
Are spousal maintenance payments guaranteed? How long does spousal maintenance last for? How do we decide on the amount of spousal maintenance? Case Study 1 — Real example where spousal maintenance agreed Elaine and Mark have been married for 17 years and have two children together, Phoebe 14 and Jacob How are the budgets calculated?
What expenses go into my budget The cost of housing, utility bills, council tax, school costs, clothes, holidays, presents, debt repayments, subscriptions and more will all make up a monthly budget. What is a Nominal Maintenance Order?
Is It Possible for Spousal Maintenance to Be Changed Yes, either of the parties involve can apply to the court and vary the spousal maintenance to reduce or increase the amount — but this can only be done if their circumstances have changed.
Who is Entitled to Receive Spousal Maintenance? We were not married but were co-habiting for many years. Am I still entitled to spousal maintenance? Am I entitled to spousal maintenance? Can you meet your financial needs without any assistance from your ex? Have you been married for a long time and you quit your job to focus on being a homemaker? At your age, is it possible to establish a career that will allow you to maintain your lifestyle or would it be difficult?
Would you benefit more from receiving a lump sum instead of monthly payments? When are your needs likely to change? Do you have children under 18 who need support?
Can you re-train to get a new career or set up a new business? Do you plan on getting married again in the near future or considering cohabiting?
My ex is refusing to pay spousal maintenance. How can we reach an agreement on spousal maintenance payments? We have already divorced, can I still make a claim for spousal maintenance? What is the difference between spousal maintenance and alimony? What is a global maintenance order A Global Maintenance Order includes an element for child maintenance within the payments to be made. Does spousal maintenance affect my income or tax? Can my ex hide their income to avoid paying spousal maintenance?
What happens if I want to live with my new partner after divorce You can of course live with your new partner. What happens if my ex has children with their new partner? Final Words Spousal maintenance is an area where many clients find it difficult to reach an agreement. Looking For Advice? Book Your Consultation Here. More posts by Ali Carter. Related Posts. What can I do if mediation breaks down?
Considering using a Divorce Mediator? How can I find the best divorce mediation near me? Is mediation legally binding? Should I Get Divorced in ? How could the Covid virus affect your parenting arrangements?
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