One area of divorce that may become contested during some point in divorce matters is Alimony. Alimony is a complicated area of divorce law that it is important to speak to an attorney about your options if you willing be paying alimony or if you may be receiving alimony.
The Florida Statutes provide the framework for alimony rights and determinations. The Courts however, rule on the law and determine whether or not alimony is appropriate and the amount in which to award. There are a number of forms of alimony in Florida: permanent periodic alimony, durational, transitional, temporary, bridge-the-gap, lump-sum and rehabilitative.
The statutes changed in 2010 and new form of alimony was created: Durational Alimony. Please call the office today to speak about the Durational Alimony Statute and how it may affect your rights and responsibilities.
In 2011, there were additional changes to alimony and the Office is aware of the legislative and caselaw changes to complex concept of alimony.
The divorce court judge can rule that one divorcee must make recurring payments to the other for spousal support. These payments are generally calculated based on the income that each former spouse generates, but many other extraneous factors must be taken into consideration during the calculations.
Some of the factors the Court uses is looking at the payor’s abiliy to pay, the payee’s need for alimony and the parties’ standard of living. There are a number of other factors the Court can take into account, such as, the federal income tax consequences of alimony payments, that is, the deductibility of qualifying payments by the payor spouse and the taxable nature of payments to the payee, may affect the planning and negotiation of a settlement between the parties.
The office also can refer you to an accountant or a tax attorney if you have tax questions with regards to alimony, taxable implications for your family law matter.
