How Is Alimony Determined in California?

Couples going through a divorce have to deal with many different types of challenges. From child custody to asset division, the difficulties of dealing with the realities of divorce can be a real headache for most people. 

Alimony, also called spousal support, is another one the contentious issues that divorcing couples in California have to deal with. 

Read on to learn more about how alimony is calculated in the state and how a family law specialist can help you. 

Calculating Alimony in California

The main purpose of alimony or spousal support is to help make the transition from married life to single life easier for the spouse with fewer financial resources or a lower-earning career. 

For that reason, the higher-earning spouse in a divorce in California may be required to pay spousal support to the other spouse during and after divorce proceedings. 

California, like many other states, offers three types of spousal support: temporary, rehabilitative, and permanent support. In addition, there is also another form of support known as reimbursement support. 

Rehabilitative support is generally the most common form granted in California divorce proceedings. With this type of support, it is expected that the lower-earning spouse will work to pick up some job skills, education, or other form of career advancement with the ultimate goal of becoming self-sufficient. 

For longer-term marriages—for example, those lasting longer than ten years—the lower-earning spouse may be granted permanent alimony. However, this is less common. 

In order to calculate the amount of alimony or spousal support to paid—or whether it should be paid at all—the court considers some or all of the following:

• Earning capacity of both spouses
• Standard of living enjoyed by both spouses during the marriage
• The amount of support that the higher-earning spouse offered the other during the marriage
• Whether the higher-earning spouse is able to pay alimony
• The length of the marriage
• The spouses’ health, age, and other factors

Because there are many different factors that go into calculating alimony, there’s no one set way of deciding if a divorce settlement agreement is fair or not. This is why people on either side of the spousal support arrangement can benefit from the guidance of an experienced attorney to ensure that their rights are protected. 

Need Help with Alimony? Learn How We’ve Got Your Back

Don’t get stuck in an alimony deal that doesn’t work for you. The Law Office of Laurence J. Brock can help you look out for your financial future. Call 909-466-7661 or fill out our contact form to get more guidance regarding spousal support in California.