How Alimony is Awarded in Florida
When it comes to alimony in the State of Florida, there is no clear-cut formula in determining:
- Whether a spouse is entitled to it
- How much should be paid
- How long it will be paid
While this makes predicting the chances of alimony being awarded in a divorce challenging, there is a legal framework in which these decisions are made, which is further discussed below.
Determining if a Spouse is Entitled to Alimony
The general idea behind alimony is that just because the marriage between two people did not work out, does not mean that only one party should enjoy the standard of living present prior to the Dissolution of Marriage.
According to Florida Statute 61.08, the following factors are considered when a judge is establishing whether alimony is appropriate during divorce are:
- The standard of living established during the marriage.
- The duration of the marriage.
- The financial resources of each party, including the non-marital and the marital assets and liabilities distributed to each.
- The earning capacities, educational levels, vocational skills, and employability of the education or training to enable such party to find appropriate employment.
- The contribution of each party to the marriage, including, but not limited to, services rendered in homemaking, child care, education, and career building of the other party.
- The responsibilities each party will have with regard to any minor children they have in common.
- The tax treatment and consequences to both parties of any alimony award, including the designation of all or a portion of the payment as a nontaxable, nondeductible payment.
- All sources of income available to either party, including income available to either party through investments of any asset held by that party.
- Any other factor necessary to do equity and justice between the parties.
As you can see, there is a significant amount of discretion given to a judge when it comes to awarding alimony, or not.
If the decision is made that a spouse is entitled to alimony, the type of alimony is determined by considering the length of the marriage.
Determining How Long Alimony is to be Paid
Generally, the length of the marriage is the leading factor in determining the type of and how long alimony should be paid.
Florida law awards marriages by length (three categories) and type (four categories) as follows:
- short-term: one lasting less than seven years.
- bridge-the-gap alimony
- durational alimony
- moderate-term: one lasting at least seven years but fewer than 17 years.
- rehabilitative alimony
- durational alimony
- long term: more than 17 years.
- permanent alimony
Determining How Much Alimony is to be Paid
As mentioned earlier, there is no “formula” in calculating how much alimony one party should pay another; however, some judges defer to The American Association of Matrimonial Lawyers guidelines, which takes 30% of the payer’s gross annual income minus 20% of the payee’s gross annual income to estimate the alimony. Ultimately, the courts look at whether the spouse requesting alimony has a need and then determine if the other spouse has the ability to satisfy, all or part, of that need. Findings of fact are required to be made to support its award. Many cases are reversed due to lack of findings of fact.
We can handle your Alimony matter, so please call us at (305)661-7000.
