There are many difficult parts of a divorce in Mississippi. People are ending a marriage and partnership that may have lasted many years. This is not an easy thing to do. During the process, the couple will need to divide their lives. This will require them to divide all of their property and assets. They will also have to determine who will have custody of the children if they are minors. Couples dealing with custody will also have to determine child support. Couples also may need to determine if one spouse will pay the other alimony after the divorce.
Alimony is not something that is awarded in every case though. To determine whether it is appropriate to award one spouse alimony a judge must analyze a number of factors. The analysis of these factors will also determine the amount of the payment and how long people will be making the payments.
Factors used to determine alimony awards
These factors include, but are not limited to:
- The current income of both parties
- The age, health and needs of the parties
- Each spouse’s ability to earn income and the amount they are capable of earning
- The length of the marriage
- The debts and expenses of each spouse and the standard of living the couple enjoyed during the marriage
- Whether there are minor children residing with the parties
- The tax consequences of the alimony award to each spouse
- Whether one spouse wasted assets during the divorce
- Whether there was any misconduct by either spouse
- Any other factor the judge deems to be fair and equitable
Every marriage is unique and alimony determinations are very fact-specific. Sometimes both spouses work and earn similar amounts of money. In other marriages, only one spouse works. In between those two situations, there can be a variety of ways couples earn their money and many reasons for why that occurs.
Alimony is just one of the issues that must be resolved in a divorce in Mississippi. The outcome of the divorce depends on how the amount and type of assets they own, any debts, if they have minor children, as well as the income of each spouse. Experienced attorneys understand how to analyze the various factors and may be able to guide one through the process.
