If you’re likely to be ordered to pay alimony (also known as spousal support or maintenance) when you divorce, it’s important to know what goes into that calculation. It’s also crucial to understand that any support order handed down during your divorce can – and likely will — be modified as financial and other circumstances change for you or your soon-to-be ex down the line.
If you’re among the growing number of divorcing spouses in their 50s or older, you may wonder what this spousal support obligation will mean for your retirement goals and dreams. The good news is that family courts don’t expect people to work until they drop dead to support their former spouse. Since a significant factor in spousal support calculations is both parties’ income, any significant and long-term or permanent change in that income can be valid grounds for seeking a modification or end to the order. That includes full or partial retirement.
Preparing your case
What do you do when you reach the stage where you’re ready to stop working or decide to cut back to part-time or freelance work? You’ll need to prepare your case for seeking a change or end to your support order.
The court will likely ask questions like the following:
- Are you a reasonable retirement age for your profession, and, if not, are there health or other factors driving your decision?
- What will your post-retirement income be (including IRA distributions, pension payouts, investment income and Social Security retirement benefits)?
- What non-support sources of income does your ex have, and what would their income be if alimony was reduced or ended?
- Has your ex made reasonable efforts to become self-supporting (if that was a condition of the support order)?
A court will also consider both your and your ex’s health, individual assets and other factors in deciding whether to grant a modification to the support order or end it.
If you and your ex are on good enough terms that you can discuss the matter privately and negotiate a modification yourselves, that’s the best-case scenario. However, that often doesn’t happen. And even if your spouse is agreeable, it’s important to have a solid case nonetheless, since a judge will have to sign off on any changes. Seeking solid legal guidance before moving forward, therefore, is generally wise.