When two people divorce, they can begin their lives as single individuals in different financial circumstances. Particularly when one of the partners to the ended marriage worked outside of the home and the other elected not to earn an income to support the family at home can the differences in their incoming wealth be exacerbated. In Colorado, a disparity in income between two formerly married people may result in an award of alimony to the lesser-earning person.
Alimony, also called spousal support, provides a person with money to support them in the wake of their divorce. In most cases, alimony is not intended to last forever. Instead, it is only intended to provide a person with the financial means to get back on their feet. Alimony may be used by a person to meet their basic needs, or it may be used to get training or education to become more capable of finding a job.
The individual who receives the alimony gets the alimony payments from their former spouse. A paying individual may be relieved of their obligation, if their ex remarries. But, as each alimony agreement or order is worded differently, it is imperative that readers consult their own alimony documents to understand how they are obligated. Depending on a person’s capacity to pay or the recipient’s capacity to earn, an alimony obligation may last a significantly long period.
While one may presume that the death of a payer would bring about the end of spousal support, this is not always true. Depending on how an agreement or order is drafted, a deceased party’s estate may still have to provide financial support to the decedent’s ex for a set period.
Like all family law matters, individuals with alimony questions should talk to their divorce lawyers about how this obligation may affect their lives. Death, remarriage and employment are only a few of the factors that can influence when alimony payments may end.
