Spousal support—formerly called alimony—is one of the most frequently contentious aspects of the divorce process. While child support is a legal obligation for divorced parents, spousal support isn’t an automatic obligation. Instead, the Colorado court considers the individual circumstances of each case before ordering one spouse to pay support to the other. Before you address the issue of spousal support in your divorce, it’s important to understand the often-confused meaning of temporary vs. permanent spousal support orders in legal terms. To help you understand the legal terms surrounding your unique case, call our Denver child custody lawyers for legal assistance today.
A divorce not only separates a family into two homes, it also divides the same resources that once supported a single household into two separate households. This often places a lower-earning or non-earning spouse at an immediate disadvantage. The Colorado courts seek to prevent one spouse from bearing an unfair financial burden during and after the divorce process or suffering from a sudden dramatic change in lifestyle.
If one spouse earns significantly less than the other spouse or is a non-earning spouse due to caring for the home and young children, or if they have a medical condition or advanced age that makes it difficult to rejoin the workforce, they may face immediate financial hardship during the separation and legal proceedings of the divorce. In these cases, a disadvantaged spouse may file a motion for temporary spousal support.
When a judge grants a motion for temporary support, the order ends with the final dissolution of the marriage. Depending on the circumstances of the case, the judge may dissolve the temporary order or they may sign a permanent spousal support order in the final divorce decree.
Despite the legal term “permanent spousal support,” spousal support orders in Colorado are rarely indefinite or lifelong orders. Instead, the word “permanent” is used as opposed to “temporary.” Permanent spousal support orders are the final orders issued as part of the divorce terms signed into binding orders by a judge.
Except under limited circumstances—such as support for an elderly or ailing spouse after a long-term marriage—permanent spousal support orders have a term limit. Generally, either the spouses agree on the higher-earning spouse paying the lower-earner a specific amount for a limited period or the judge orders the payment during the divorce trial if the paying spouse contests the request.
Most spousal support orders provide financial relief to a lower-earning parent or a stay-at-home parent with young children until they have reasonable time to find employment, increase their hours or pay rate, or complete their education or job training.
Judges do not always agree to temporary or permanent spousal support orders if the paying spouse disputes the request. A judge is more likely to award spousal support under the following circumstances:
Judges also commonly award spousal support to elderly spouses who have aged out of the workforce or a spouse with a medical condition that prevents them from becoming self-sufficient.
Spousal support orders are an important aspect of a divorce. The results of a request for spousal support greatly impact both spouses as they move forward after the divorce. Call the Colorado divorce attorneys at Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C. with decades of experience in all aspects of Colorado divorce, including temporary and permanent spousal support orders.
