Spousal Support in New York
When a couple splits up, one of the major areas of dissension that must be addressed is spousal support, which is also often referred to as maintenance or alimony. Marriages of a very short duration generally do not involve an award of spousal support. The requirement that one spouse pay the other spousal support, whether on a temporary or permanent basis, must be either agreed to by the parties or decided by the court.
Spousal support can be ordered for:
- Mortgage payments
- Interest payments
- Insurance
- Taxes
- Repairs
- Costs of maintaining a residence
When making a decision about the duration of and the amount of support, the court considers the following:
- Income and property
- How long the marriage lasted
- Age and health of each spouse
- Ability of each spouse to earn wages
- Ability of the spouse who desires support to become self-supporting
- Whether the party seeking support has a reduced earning capacity due to having foregone employment or education
- Whether there are any children and where they live
- The tax consequences of a support order
- Whether the party seeking support contributed to the career or provided services to assist the other party in a career
- Whether either party has wasted marital property or transferred property without fair consideration in anticipation of divorce proceedings
- Any other important facts
Our divorce lawyers are available to discuss your situation. We provide aggressive representation for all divorce and family law matters.