Spousal Support

Question: I was married 3 years in california can i get spousal support? I didn't work and was married 3 years and am now filing for a divorce, can I get spousal support in California

Answer: usually it is 10 years

Question: Why do men feel like they deserve spousal support? Only women should get spousal support. They have done all the housework AND even outside work that we have done, so why not give them a bonus and give them all some spousal support when they divorce us. We are not worthy to be around women or to marry such wonderful creatures. all we do is work for them anyway so why not give them total rights to spousal support. We are only tools to help create their children. We should be grateful to the women. Does anyone agree with me?

Answer: Nice satire. I don't think men and women should get alimony after a marriage ends. It's simply not right.

Question: Can 401K or IRA be garnished to pay spousal support? if I have no job to pay spousal support can my 401K or ira be garnished? State of California. It was already split and this is my half. What California law says it's prohibited, if you know? Thanks everyone

Answer: Yes, it can be in some states. There are strict limitations upon it, but retirement accounts can be garnished. You may not be protected in California. You should consult an attorney about this to be certain that your accounts are in order.

Question: Can my ex-wife make a claim for half my pension and spousal support if the court still has jurisdiction? Judgement for divorce was made in1989. The court retained jurisdiction indefinitely over child support, spousal support, and my pension. Since then my wife has not made a claim to any of it. Can she still petition for it or is it too late. My kids are not of the age of majority.

Answer: Yes she could. Sounds like you have been a lucky man so far.

Question: How long after being divorced can you apply for spousal support? My husbands ex wife who have been divorced for over four years now is planning on applying for spousal support. For the divorce she recived the house as alimony. He paid child support until his two kids moved in with us. We live in the state of California and she lives in New York. Can she legally get spousal support from my husband? She sold her house and lives with a guy, works at Walmart and goes to school. Now over four years later she wants more money from my husband. If anyone has an answers to this problem, please advise. Thanks!

Answer: To the dum dums who don't know family law, you first have to look at the MSA (marital settlement agreement) or last court orders that have to do with spousal support. If spousal support is reserved, then it is open at any time. Only if spousal support is terminated, that means she cannot come after spousal support EVER. Look at family code section 4320 (if in California). There is also a presumption if she is cohabitating with someone else in a romantic relationship

Question: difference between civil case and child / spousal support? What is the difference between civil cases and child / spousal support? How come with child / spousal support, it is easier to obtain the money with the family maintenance enforcement program or the government will help you, but when you sue someone, they can pretty much skip town and it's a lot more difficult to get your money?

Answer: A civil case is a lawsuit, such as you stealing money from someone, your kid got bit by a dog, you slipped on a floor in a store due to neglegance..etc. A spousal support hearing is to see how much money based on your income you owe to the other party (ex wife/husband/bf/gf) so your child can get its basic necessities and other things too.

Question: How do I collect spousal support? It is court ordered that my soon-to-be ex-husband pay me spousal support but there is no way he will just write me a check every month, how do I go about collecting it?

Answer: WTF do you need 'spousal support' for? This is the modren world. Why can't you earn your own way like everybody else?

Question: can you seek spousal support if you got fired from your job? Can you seek spousal support if you get fired from your job for stealing? If a spouse gets fired for illegal activities from her job and then files for spousal support will the courts grant this? Please explain in detail or does anyone know of any examples? I know it makes sense that the courts would not support illegal activities, But what grounds would she have to stand on for filing? She did this of her own doing, Not me

Answer: Spousal support/maintenance can be sought for any reason. She would not be ineligible for spousal support because she lost her job - not even because she was fired for theft. Spousal support is requested and granted through the family courts. Generally, a person requests spousal maintenance based on financial need. It is easier to get maintenance in some states versus others. In my state, I worked on a case in which the wife requested spousal maintenance based on her claim that she was an unemployed, uneducated stay-at-home mom. She was awarded maintenance. Three months later, we went back to court with proof that she was working online in the adult entertainment industry . . . earning almost as much each month as my client. She had submitted declarations signed under penalty of perjury that she was not working and had no income. So, she actually perpetrated a fraud on the courts and could have been arrested and charged for perjury. We asked that spousal maintenance be terminated. This woman promptly quit working for the website and asked that the maintenance be continued. We were SHOCKED when the court ordered that maintenance continue - based on the judge's desire to keep her from working on that website. HUH? We're appealing the decision but this was the reality. And this happens every day in every jurisdiction. If you state allows maintenance and your income has been and is significantly more than hers AND especially if the two of you have children, spousal maintenance is a possibility.

Question: somebody that's domestically abused have to pay spousal support? I know somebody thats being domestically abused (he's a guy) but he's afraid of his spouse killing him, he cant afford to pay her spousal support so that why he doesnt want to leave the home. He was told by a lawyer that if he left the house he would be abandoning the home and he would legally have to pay her. I was wondering if this was true with somebody thats being domestically abused.

Answer: Sounds like a load of crap to me. No one HAS to stay in an abusive relationship. Has he ever called the police when he's been abused? If he hasn't, he needs to. Not just because it's the right thing to do for anyone who's abused, but it also establishes a pattern. He could actually leave the first instance the police were called. That's a matter of safety, and would never be viewed as abandoning. There are shelters for men as well as women. I think it would make his case look really good if he had the cops remove him from the home and take him to one. Spousal support is another thing. Unless he's been her sole support, and she's never worked during the marriage, support would be very hard for her to get. At least, not for a long period of time. I hope this isn't an excuse you're getting from some guy you, or some woman you know is dating. In that case, all he needs is a wheelbarrow... to haul the BS.

Question: I wonder how alimony works? How do you know if you qualify? And Spousal Support how does that go? I am getting a divorce, I took care of my kids,practically myself, my company closed up after working 15 years. I am going thru a divorce,no jobs for me yet, am I elegible for spousal support, and how does alimony go? I have no idea I am in the state of Pennsylvania...

Answer: Are you a man or a woman, it really makes a big difference. It also depends on your ex-spouses income right now and during the marriage. If you made less then you spouse during the marriage but you make more now then you would probably qualify, but if your making the same now and can't prove your trying to make more then no. But like I said, I'm not a chauvinist, I'm actually a feminist, but mostly women qualify for alimony, I've never met or even heard of a man getting the alimony before.

Question: Can someone collect spousal support if they have a job, and work full time independently? The only thing they've got going for them is, "My ex makes more money than me." But: There are no kids involved, both work full time...............both are have jobs................. both independent. Can one collect spousal support simply on the basis that "he makes more money than me" ???

Answer: DEPENDS on jurisdiction, length of marriage, ability of the lower income spouse to work, if you go to court/mediation, etc... Spousal support is not guaranteed. Child support is.

Question: Is spousal support received through the military different from Child support from the state? If you are receiving an allotment from your spouses pay for BAH Dif will it stop once you get awarded child support? Being as though you and your spouse are still legally married? FYI.... I'm not receiving his BAH I'm receiving the Non-locality rate for an E2. (BAh-Diff... Way..way less then what his BAH once was) I say once was because it was taken away being as though he did not help me financial.

Answer: Yes! The court order over rules the spousal support through the Army. Many times the court will require the non-custodial parent to pay less. Either way the spousal support will stop once the court has made the order to provide child support. Wait, your still married? Why would you get awarded child support from your husband? I don't believe you will get more than his BAH. Sounds like you and your husband have some issues. Best to end it now, because you are coming off as a greedy B.

Question: If I file for divorce, can I ask her for child support & spousal support? I want to file for divorce & ask for custody of my kids. Don't I have just as much right to ask for spousal & child support as my wife does? I am sick of the courts being so biased.

Answer: Yes you can. Also, it's been done before...as a matter of fact my father set legal precedence in our state for getting exactly that in the early 1980's. It's now noted in our states divorce guide PDF.

Question: How can I claim spousal support on my income tax return? I am seperated from my spouse, and the annulment is still on-going. I send support twice a month. Can I claim this? Do I need a written agreement?

Answer: No one's been helpful yet. In CANADA (learn to read people), you can claim it if you have a court order. It can ONLY be spousal support that is deductible. Child support (unless support began prior to May 1997) is NOT deductible from the payor's income NOR claimed as income by the recipient. But, IF you have a court order, you absolutely CAN deduct the spousal support payments from your income in Canada.

Question: How does spousal support work after separation? What does one need to qualify for spousal support? Is merely having one partner who has a much higher income enough to qualify the other one to get spousal support, or does the lower income partner have to show that they alone cannot make a decent living and need help? Need to decide whether to make that a big negotiation point or whether its relatively small. I make good living but partner makes multiples of what i make, and that gap will grow in the coming future years

Answer: It really depends on the state here. For instance, I don't think Texas allows alimony, period. I've gone thru divorce here in California, and it is part of the process. So #1, find out what your state law is, and the best way to do that is talk to a divorce lawyer. #2... So that being said, here's the deal in Cali, for what it's worth to you... The amount: Factors in two things... For the person who makes more, the consideration will be what were they earning during the marriage, with biggest consideration placed on what they were earning in the later years. For the person requesting support, it's not about what you earned as much as your earning potential. If you have the capability to earn more, the court may expect you to do so when doing calculations. At least in Cali, potential future earnings is usually irrelevant UNLESS you supported someone through school or the startup phase of a business, etc. Then you have a potential claim to their future earning power. Otherwise their career trajectory is moot... if you want get the benefit of their future potential over and above what they were contributing in the marriage, basically you've gotta stay married to them... This is probably one of the biggest areas where alimony differs from child support. For CS, you can go back whenever and however many times you want to request increases as the paying ex-spouse's earnings increase. With alimony, it's all about maintaining the lifestyle of the marriage (as closely as possible for both parties...) and not about what lifestyle the other person MAY be able to provide in the future. If you think about it, that would be kind of a bullsh!t premise.... Also keep in mind that the amount may not be awarded with the intent to bring you both to equality. In CA, they look at getting the receiving spouse to 80% of the paying spouse's level. And also keep in mind that taxes, insurance, etc are all factored in. So the actual amount can get kinda complicated... Length: In Cali its pretty simple. For marriages less than 10 years, it's usually half the term of the marriage. For marriages less than 2 years, the courts are frequently not awarding alimony. And for longer than 10 years, it's until the receiving spouse remarries (or the payer can prove in court that they are cohabitating and receiving "spouse like" support from another person...) This can also be all over the map tho'. Fortunately, Cali has started to shift towards the goal of self-sufficiency for both parties. This means they've been less willing to award alimony in short marriages, awarded shorter periods in longer term marriages, and set a higher expectation for contribution on the receiving party. Of course, all this assumes that there are no children involved. CS is a totally separate issue, and usually negotiated as such as it is considered the right of the child not the spouse. As to whether it can make a good negotiation point? That's up to you, and obviously depends on all the other issues, assets, etc. involved. For me, I made a slightly higher than mandated alimony offer as part of a "take this or I'll fight you on everything" premise just to try and get things cleared as quickly and painlessly as possible. My thoughts? I can always make more money.... I've also known people to take lower amounts as lump sum to avoid still being attached to the expouse by the "check-book hip" in perptuity. Another example is someone who agreed to a higher alimony payment in exchange for keeping additional community assets (in this case, not having to split 401K $). And finally, you gotta factor in retirement benefits (if you guys have been together for a long time...), pensions and all that happy stuff. Hope this helps a little. Bottom line, talk to a lawyer, but not a shark. If there's anything you all can do to keep this process amicable, I'd suggest you do it. You can (and should) get all the information. But some family law attorneys are more combative than others... and than can lead you to an unnecessarily expensive and emotionally draining process... Oh... one more thing. As to when support starts? At least in Cali the receiver is eligible from the date of separation. It's referred to as "temporary support" until the final settlement. However, the paying spouse can (and probably should) argue for any amounts paid as temporary support to be counted towards their final negotiated alimony settlement. So if you all end up agreeing to 4 years of alimony (pulling this out my @ss....) and it takes you 1 year to get to that during which your spouse is paying you support... those dollars would likely be applied against the 4 year final settlement, reducing it to around 3. Just something else to keep in mind. Best of luck and don't skimp on getting good (but balanced) legal advice!

Question: Can I sue my ex for arrearages in spousal support and medical reimbursement? Does anyone know if I can take my ex to court for these arrearages? He is also big time behind in child support but Friend of the Court is moving so slow that it's now at the $10,000 mark. In the meantime my ex has purchased a nice little Mazda RX7, and has a collectors BMW motorcycle!!! Can I attach them? Can I attach his bank accounts?

Answer: My ex husband was ordered to pay child support through the state Child Support Enforcement Division or CSED. All I had to do was apply for them to collect the support. I provided a certified copy of the child support order and then they took it from there. They executed his wages and then when he decided to become "self employed" and not pay, they could garnish his bank accounts as well. Got his attention real fast. Better yet, it was of no cost to me. I was also eligible to apply for a free review through and administrative law judge and the district court where our divorce was finalized, every three years. And, if either of us have our incomes changed by 30%, we can also have a review done for free. Having worked as a debt collector, you do have to get a judgment before you attach anything, and then the judgment is only good for the arrears that he is behind at the time the order is entered, plus court and collection fees, usually. You do have to ask for that, though. Also, attaching vehicles is a pain in the hiney. Much much better to attach bank accounts and then put liens on real property.

Question: If my WIFE ABANDONED my 5 yr old DAUGHTER and I, can I (the HUSBAND) seek SPOUSAL SUPPORT & FULL CUSTODY? My WIFE ABANDONED her HUSBAND and 5 year old... Can I (the Husband) reasonably seek both Child Support (which I have received none in over 1 year) and Spousal Support as I am unemployed and receiving benefits?

Answer: I hope you have already filed for custody as she can still take the child away from you, and yes on both. * To learn a father's rights, join Dads House in Yahoo Groups. It's free to join, access all materials, and you associate with other fathers going through, and have already gone through, the same issues. We have an Educational Manual that teaches everything that needs to be known in addressing your legal issues. http://Dads-House.org \\\\\\\\\\\\

Question: Will I have to pay spousal support? I live in Louisiana, and my wife and I have been married for one year, and have a 1-month old son. Today she told me that she wants a divorce, and we plan on separating. Will I have to pay her spousal support? She worked up until a few months before she had the baby.

Answer: As you know, Louisianan law is different from the rest of the U.S., so this question can not be answered clearly. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_l… If she is not nursing the child, you could file first and get temporary custody. Also, she is likely suffering from post-parten depression, so you could have her ordered into counseling, with the intent to keep the marriage together.

Question: Spousal Support when he was the one tha left me? My ex husband was supposed to come to Germany with me, I'm in the Army, but he never left Philadelphia. We have been separated since December last year, but now that I'm filling for Divorce he sends me to legal for not paying Spousal Support when I've been giving him my whole paycheck sometimes. What do I do?

Answer: You need to get a lawyer but from what i found on the ineternet, your state says that you are both responsible for each other. If you have been sending your paychecks then youve done your duty. He has to help support the marriage in my eyes but heres a link to a site that tells you a little about it.

Question: Spousal support question, Right now my spouse makes less money than I do but in a year she'll make twice as me Spousal support question, Right now my spouse makes less money than I do but in 2 years she'll make twice as much as me. If we get a divorce now, how will the spousal support thing work now and in 2 years when she makes more money. Sate is California.

Answer: Have your separation agreement or spousal support order include a limited time period of payments or have it worded such that it is reviewable in 2 years. A change in circumstances is normally enough to apply to have the support reduced or removed however it is MUCH easier to do so with the foregoing factored in.