Spousal support, traditionally called alimony, requires a person to pay a certain amount of money to an ex-spouse on a regular basis. It usually is requested by a lawyer and client when this client earns substantially less money than the other spouse. Often, spousal support is intended to be temporary until the person can become more financially secure. A Family Lawyer in Jefferson County MO may help with the termination of these support payments.
Types of Arrangements
Some support arrangements have an end date built in right from the start. If not, payments typically end if the recipient gets married or the payer retires. But this must be stipulated in court documents. It is not a legal requirement under state regulations, even if this seems unfair to the person making payments.
The arrangement may include a review date, at which time the situation is revisited by the two individuals and their attorneys. Still other arrangements continue until the two ex-partners agree it’s time for the payments to stop. If the person receiving the payments refuses this request from the ex-spouse, that individual must ask the court to make a decision. This is usually done with representation by a Family Lawyer in Jefferson County MO.
Reasons to Request Termination
The person making payments might request an end to the arrangement if he or she has experienced a significant drop in income. The request might come about from the payer, through representation by an organization like Wegmann Law Firm, if the recipient has moved in with a romantic partner or has acquired a well-paying job.
Support Modification
Modification of support may be a possibility as well. A judge sometimes allows this if the payer no longer makes the same level of income, and if he or she had faithfully made payments for several years. Modification may be more suitable than termination if the recipient is unable to work full-time or is close to the age at which Social Security retirement benefits will begin. A judge will probably not end or modify payments if the petitioner is out of work after quitting a job, or if it seems that the petitioner has intentionally lost a job. Like us on Facebook.
