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If you are going through a divorce currently then you know that alimony is no laughing matter. An inability to support yourself and your household is a frightening prospect. Being dependent on your spouse for financial sustenance is not a position that you should want to be in. Even if you have a job it may not be enough to pay the rent and put food on the table. The seemingly never-ending increase in prices meets stagnant wages and you have a messy situation on your hands.
This is a reason why some people choose to remain in failing marriages. The idea is that the failing marriage may be unpleasant but it is less unpleasant than suffering financial instability. Avoiding your spouse is easier than avoiding a bill collector, in other words. However, this is not a great long-term plan. Even if you are putting off the divorce it is obvious that you will have to deal with the problems in your marriage sooner than later.
Today’s blog post from the Law Office of Bryan Fagan focuses on a topic that is interesting if not frustrating. Namely, what to do when your spouse stops working to avoid paying alimony. This is a subject that may not only be relevant to you but is also complex. Stick around today as we discuss this subject in greater detail.
What can your spouse do to challenge your request for alimony?
You know your budget and what you can afford. Allow the Law Office of Bryan Fagan to take you on a brief detour outside the world of family law and into the world of personal finances. If you have not yet compiled a household budget for yourself and your family then start now. Budgets do not constrain your spending. Rather, they permit you to spend freely knowing what you can and cannot afford.
Starting to budget during a family law case is a great deal. Many people in your shoes worry about money when their real issue is spending. How many streaming services do you have that you do not use? What can you do to increase your income and minimize expenses? These are questions that you may have never asked yourself which can pay major dividends. The key to this question is understanding the money you have coming into your home and the money going out.
From there, you have a much better understanding of your limitations from a financial perspective. The more limited you are the worse position you are in. Unless you can immediately start making more money you will need to consider your options within the confines of the divorce. Beyond alimony, your immediate option would be to receive a disproportionate share of your community estate.
Community property is a way for you to pay your bills
Getting divorced means dividing up your community property. This is largely property acquired during your marriage. A just and right division of your community estate will be undertaken in the divorce. Just and right does not mean “equal” but more so means “fair.” As in, the totality of your circumstances is considered when dividing marital property. If the circumstances of your case favor you receiving more community property than your spouse then that is what will happen.
For instance, if you are disabled, have no education, or otherwise are at a disadvantage when it comes to finding work then you may be set up to receive a disproportionate share of your community estate. A spouse who has a great career, an advanced degree, and a ton of work experience has an advantage in this area. As a result, this is one set of circumstances that would favor the less career-minded spouse. A disproportionate division of the marital assets is possible.
Additionally, consider if you were the spouse who worked part-time or full-time earlier in your marriage while your spouse was in school. That business or law degree your spouse earned may have been paid for by your hard work. This is another reason why “stay at home” parents or spouses should not be thought of as contributing no money or income to a marriage. Quite possibly, it is because that spouse worked that the high-earning spouse can do what he or she does.
Arguments against spousal maintenance or contractual alimony
First, let’s define the types of alimony that exist in Texas. Texas does not have alimony in its “pure” sense as other states do. Texas has something called contractual alimony which can only be agreed to in settlement negotiations. If you are interested in post-divorce spousal support then contractual alimony may be your best bet as far as achieving that goal. As we are about to see there are limitations on the other type of post-divorce spousal support that courts can order.
That form of court-ordered spousal support is known as spousal maintenance. It has only been about thirty years since Texas family courts could order spousal maintenance. There are limitations on when it can be ordered, as well. You and your spouse must have been married for at least ten years for maintenance to be ordered. On top, you would need to prove that you are unable to meet your minimal, basic needs without spousal maintenance.
On top of that, do not expect your spouse to readily agree to pay you alimony. This is especially true for those of you who have been married for less than ten years. In situations like this, you are unlikely to be awarded spousal maintenance due to the length of your marriage. Unless you have been the victim of domestic violence then a judge does not have it within their discretion to award maintenance. Therefore, be prepared for the following types of “defenses” against alimony to be made during negotiations.
Why your spouse may push back against contractual alimony during negotiations
An inability to afford their bills may be the first defense your spouse offers you during alimony negotiations. Your spouse needs to have the ability to pay your spousal maintenance. Therefore, determining the income of your spouse as well as his expenses is important. The more detailed an overview the court receives from your spouse, the better. That way you both can know whether he can fit spousal maintenance into your budget. What you want to avoid is a situation where your spouse is ordered to pay spousal maintenance but struggles to pay it in addition to child support.
When spousal maintenance is not an option
Spousal maintenance will not be an option for everyone. Some families are in a financial position to absorb an additional financial responsibility like this. However, many more families cannot take on the added expense. This may not be great news for you but to consider the situation objective is to be fair to all parties. What are your options if you do not have spousal maintenance to rely upon?
In a situation like this, you should consider preparing a case for a disproportionate share of your community estate. A lack of separate property to sustain yourself would be the first element for a court to consider. Therefore, preparing an inventory and appraisement is a great way for you to be able to ensure that you know the exact financial circumstances that you face. What do you own, what does your spouse own and what do you own as a married couple?
Negotiations with your spouse are a key attribute when it comes to dividing up the community estate. Many spouses miss out on a key opportunity to present themselves in negotiations by not preparing well. Again, this is a chance for you to bypass a court and work directly with your spouse. Allowing you to walk away from the divorce with sufficient property to sustain yourself is a worthwhile goal. It puts you in a position where you may not need spousal maintenance at all.
What about prenuptial or marital property agreements?
Prenuptial agreements tend to receive a bad “rap.” We hear about prenups from movies and television shows. They are rarely portrayed as anything other than opportunities for greedy men and women to maintain their wealth. However, prenuptial agreements are great ways for you to prepare for your marriage. Negotiating a prenuptial agreement means coming up with a plan for how to divide property in the event of a divorce. Call it cynical, but in actuality is just smart depending upon your circumstances.
Marital property agreements function the same as prenuptial property agreements. The key difference is that the marital property agreement is signed during the marriage. You can still decide how you would like your property divided in the event of a divorce. Importantly, marital property agreements allow you and your spouse to negotiate these terms while you two are not in disagreement on things. You may even be able to help avoid a divorce by negotiating a marital property agreement.
Being represented by counsel is an important part of this process. Many people in your shoes struggle to come up with a plan for these negotiations. Working with an experienced family law attorney helps a great deal. If a discussion on alimony and spousal maintenance is stressful for you why not nip it in the bud and hammer out an agreement earlier? A premarital or marital property agreement helps you to avoid these uncomfortable decisions during a divorce. Contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan today for a free-of-charge consultation.
Mediation as a means to help with spousal support
When it comes to mediation, this is a tool that can be your best friend in a divorce. Mediation involves working with a third party to help you and your spouse negotiate a settlement to your divorce. When you all are experiencing bumps in the road towards a settlement it is time to consider mediation. Courts typically require that you attend mediation at least twice. Once before a temporary orders hearing and once before a trial. It is during the pre-trial mediation where alimony negotiations are especially important.
You and your spouse work with your attorneys to determine a mutually agreeable mediator to select. Usually, the family law attorneys in a given area know of a handful of mediators who are highly thought of. Once you select a mediator it is time to prepare. All of the documentation we talked about earlier comes to be very important in mediation. You can exchange information in mediation so that you and your spouse are on the same page. Many disagreements on this subject come about due to both of you having different ideas about each of your incomes and the size of your community estate.
What is great about mediation is that the chances of your case settling increase dramatically. Mediation is the last opportunity to negotiate contractual alimony. If you are not able to settle on these issues then you can attempt to argue for spousal maintenance in a trial. However, spouses like yourself are best suited to negotiate these sorts of subjects together in mediation.
When can spousal maintenance be modified?
When you are ordered to pay spousal maintenance it is reasonable to ask when that responsibility will come to an end. Even if you are ordered to pay spousal maintenance, the longest it can be ordered is for ten years. However, your obligation to pay maintenance can come to an end even before that time. This is true when various scenarios play out in your case.
A modification may be possible if you can show that a material and substantial change in circumstances has occurred in your life or that of your ex-spouse. If you lost your job, became disabled, or had anything else significant impact on your income-earning ability then this would count as a material and substantial change. Documentation and preparation matter. If you have lost a well-paying job then be prepared to argue why that same job could not be located again.
A modification of spousal maintenance is also possible in a situation where you become injured or disabled. A workplace or home accident may lead to you requiring additional care that you must pay for. On top of that, you may no longer be able to work in your former career due to your physical limitations. Both of these factors may significantly reduce your ability to pay spousal maintenance.
Termination of spousal maintenance
By the same token, it is possible to terminate spousal maintenance outright. First, if your spouse remarries then your obligation to pay spousal maintenance comes to an end. This is fairly straightforward to prove. Another circumstance that is more difficult to prove is the cohabitation of your ex-spouse with another person, romantically. You may have an idea that your ex-spouse is living with their significant other but this can be difficult to prove. Many times people in your ex-spouse’s position will do everything possible to avoid detection of their living arrangement.
Can your ex-spouse quit their job to avoid paying alimony?
In short, an ex-spouse cannot purposefully lose their income in an attempt to end their spousal maintenance obligation. Or, more accurately, your ex-spouse is free to do what he chooses with his employment. However, that does not necessarily mean that his obligation to pay spousal maintenance would also come to an end. Losing his income can happen. On the other hand, losing his income due to his not wanting to pay spousal maintenance is not going to work.
What do you need to know in preparation for an alimony case?
It is stressful to be in a position where you need financial assistance after a divorce. The divorce itself costs money which we have not even discussed today. These costs begin to add up over time. You may also need to find suitable employment for yourself after the case comes to an end. However, this does not mean that you have no options. Finding an experienced family law attorney to help you with your journey is helpful. The attorneys with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan are here to help.
Our attorneys do not sit back and let our paralegals do the work for us. We work on cases closely and take a specific interest in each case. With our level of experience, it is no wonder why we can achieve favorable results for our clients in court and negotiations. Thank you for joining us today here on our blog. We post unique and informative blogs each day of the week. When you have questions about the world of Texas family law it is time to seek out answers. The Law Office of Bryan Fagan is here for you and your family.
Questions about the material contained in today’s blog post? Contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan
The attorneys with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan offer free of charge consultations six days a week in person, over the phone, and via video. These consultations are a great way for you to learn more about the world of Texas family law. Before signing a document or negotiating on a subject you do not know well, contact our office. We look forward to the opportunity of serving you during an important part of your life. The Law Office of Bryan Fagan is on your side.
