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Florida Law - What Factors Affect the Alimony Amount?
The court may award either rehabilitative or permanent alimony. The alimony may take the
form of monthly payments or of an all-at-once payment. (You should be careful, though,
because all-at-once payments may be treated differently for tax purposes than the
same amount paid over time.)
Here are the factors the court considers in granting alimony:
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Your pre-divorce standard of living (to try to match it after the divorce).
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How long the marriage lasted (longer marriages tend to bring more alimony).
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Ages of the parties (older parties tend to get more alimony).
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Physical condition of the parties.
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Emotional condition of the parties.
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Financial resources of each party, and the property division.
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The time required for a party to get the education that party needs to find appropriate employment.
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Homemaking, child care, education and career building contributions by a party.
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Any other factor necessary for fairness and justice (this is a catchall that gives the court authority to do whatever it thinks is fair).
In general, if there were no children, both spouses can work, the spouses are under age 40, and the
marriage lasted six years or less, any
awarded will be temporary (1 to 3 years), not permanent.
Sections 61.075(8), 61.08.
Cases:
Cheney (1999)
Florida law says that income of a new live-in companion may be considered in setting child support
and alimony. However, the intended recipient must demonstrate that the new live-in
companion actually is contributing to the household.
In this case, the wife had a live-in companion, but both sides agreed that, in fact, he was not
contributing anything either to the household or rent.
Despite this fact, the lower court judge had figured a $950 per month contribution from the new boyfriend.
The appeals court said that this was wrong.
Because the new boyfriend was not contributing anything, in fact, the judge was not allowed to
make any assumptions about contributions. And so the husband could not decrease the alimony award.
La Huis (1991) 590 So2d 557 (marriage of 3 1/2 years' duration; husband's pension plan increased
in value and wife was given $10,000 which was "an equitable" portion of this increase, plus $201
in medical bills and attorney's fees; but wife received no alimony, because her earning potential
after the marriage was not diminished).
Walters (1991) 588 So2d 47 (appropriate to consider fact that wife was cohabiting with boyfriend
who contributed $300 a week to the maintenance of the joint household with wife).
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