Alimony
Alimony is based on the relative needs and resources of the parties.
The State of Tennessee sets out criteria for establishing its statutes:
- Relative earning capacity, obligations, needs, and financial resources of each party, including income from pension, profit sharing or retirement plans and all other sources;
- The relative education and training of each party, the ability and opportunity of each party to secure such education and training, and the necessity of a party to secure further education and training to improve such party’s earning capacity to a reasonable level;
- Duration of the marriage;
- Age and mental condition of each party;
- Physical condition of each party, including, but not limited to, physical disability or incapacity due to a chronic debilitating disease;
- The extent to which it would be undesirable for a party to seek employment outside the home because such party will be custodian of a minor child of the marriage;
- Separate assets of each party, both real and personal, tangible and intangible;
- Provisions made with regard to the marital property as defined in 36-4-12 1;
- The standard of living of the parties established during the marriage;
- Extent to which each party has made such tangible and intangible contributions to the marriage as monetary and homemaker contributions and tangible and intangible contributions by a party to the education, training, or increased earning power of the other party;
- Relative fault of the parties in cases where the court, in its discretion, deems it appropriate to do so; and
- Such other factors, including the tax consequences to each party, as are necessary to consider the equities between the parties.
Different Types of Alimony
Alimony: One spouse pays alimony to the other for financial support. The court might order alimony for various reasons and may award different types of alimony.
Rehabilitative Alimony: Alimony for a limited duration which is intended to allow the spouse to rehabilitate themselves, by going to school, etc.
Alimony in Futuro: This is for longer marriages in which one spouse should be entitled to live according to the custom they followed during the marriage. The spouse may also be too old or ill to return to school or work.
Transitional Alimony: This is awarded when the court finds one spouse economically disadvantaged and finds that this spouse will need assistance from the other spouse because of the divorce. Homemakers may be entitled to this type of alimony. All of these types of alimony cannot be modified by the Court after a divorce.
Alimony in solido: A lump-sum award paid over a period of time and cannot be modified. It is a type of property settlement paid over time. It is non-modifiable.
Living with someone after the divorce or remarriage may cause the alimony to stop. Death of one of the persons paying or receiving alimony will terminate alimony unless the divorce agreement says otherwise.