Articles Posted in Alimony

A court determining property division and alimony is required to look at certain factors. What are known as the Ferguson factors related to property division include how much each party substantially contributed to accumulating property, the degree to which each spouse has disposed of marital assets, the market value of the assets, the value of the assets minus equitable factors, tax and other economic consequences, the extent to which property division can be used to eliminate sources of friction, the needs of the parties to achieve financial security, and any other factors that should be considered to make an equitable division.

The Armstrong factors to be considered in connection with an alimony award are the spouses’ income and expenses, the parties’ earning ability, the parties’ needs, the parties’ obligations and assets, how long the marriage was, the presence of minors, the parties’ age, their standard of living during the marriage and when support was being determined, tax consequences, spousal fault or misconduct, the waste of assets, and any other factor considered just and equitable to set alimony.

In a recent appeal, a woman sued for divorce, and the couple agreed that it was on the basis of irreconcilable differences. A chancellor had to decide issues of alimony, equitable distribution, and attorneys’ fees. A judgment of divorce was executed, in which the divorce was granted and the marital assets were divided. The wife was awarded $1,360 on a monthly basis from the husband’s retirement account, with this payment to be made for 12 years. The wife appealed on the grounds that no specific findings were made and that the chancellor had failed to make specific findings about alimony.

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Do not “sit” on your right to enforce or collect on a divorce judgment. Let me repeat that: DO NOT wait too long to enforce a divorce judgment or any incorporated alimony, property settlement, or child support judgment. I give this counsel to all prospective clients that contact me asking whether they should bring their ex-spouse back to court to enforce alimony, property settlement, and/or child support agreements/provisions associated with a divorce judgment (collectively “divorce judgment”). If a person does not timely seek to enforce a divorce judgment, the law can and will bar enforcement of that judgment by way of the statute of limitations.In assessing any case, one of the very first things an attorney does is determines whether the statute of limitations has ran on a client’s claim. The statute of limitations sets a particular time period for claims and causes of action to be filed so as to ensure that such claims are “ripe” for judicial determination. If a person files a claim or seeks to enforce a judgment outside the statute of limitations–after the legally prescribed time to bring the claim has ran or expired–then the person’s otherwise viable claim will be barred by the statute of limitations because it is considered untimely, or “stale.” Despite very few narrow exceptions where the doctrine of laches or equitable estoppel applies, if the statute of limitations has expired on a given claim or right to enforce, then recovery or relief cannot be had on such a claim. See e.g., Nicholas v. Nicholas, 841 So. 2d 1208, 1212-13 (Miss. Ct. App. 2003). This concept equally applies to divorce judgments, including alimony, property settlement, and child support provisions/judgments included in, or attached to, a final judgment of divorce.
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As I explained in an earlier post, alimony is still alive in Mississippi, and it is definitely something a person should consider when contemplating a divorce. Again, when people hear the word “alimony” they typically think of permanent alimony. But, what many people do not know is that Mississippi recognizes temporary spousal support as well, such as rehabilitative alimony.

Mississippi courts have recognized rehabilitative alimony, also known as “transitional” or “time-limited” alimony, since 1995. As the Mississippi Supreme Court recently noted, rehabilitative alimony “is an equitable mechanism which allows a party needing assistance to become self-supporting without becoming destitute in the interim.” Pierce v. Pierce, 132 So. 3d 553, 565 (Miss. 2014) (quoting Hubbard v. Hubbard, 656 So. 2d 124, 130 (Miss.1995)). In other words, rehabilitative alimony is temporary, transitional monetary support awarded to a needy spouse while he or she attempts to re-enter the workforce and obtain a viable income to support himself or herself following the divorce. As a result, in many instances, rehabilitative alimony is available to a spouse who put his or her career on hold while taking care of the marital home; for example, the stay-at-home spouse. Lauro v. Lauro, 847 So. 2d 843, 849 (Miss. 2003). However, in some cases, rehabilitative alimony has been awarded to a divorced spouse who maintained a full-time job during and after the marriage. See Brady v. Brady, 14 So. 3d 823, 826 (Miss. Ct. App. 2009).
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When I talk with clients about divorce, I have heard many say “I understand there is no alimony in Mississippi.” Many of these people show up in my office seeking help with a divorce, and unfortunately, they are mistaken because alimony is still alive and well in Mississippi. In this regards, one of the most stressful issues that many of my clients face is the potential of having to pay alimony to their spouse in the event of a divorce. Many clients simply do not understand why they have to pay money to support a person to which they are no longer married. As a result, alimony is often both a confusing and frustrating issue in many divorce cases.

Alimony, also known as spousal support, has been a concept embraced by Mississippi law since 1848. DEBORAH BELL, BELL ON MISSISSIPPI FAMILY LAW § 9.01[5] (2d ed. 2011). The purpose of alimony is to provide support for a financially-dependent spouse, albeit the divorcing wife or husband. Mississippi law maintains a strong public policy in favor of providing financial support to divorcing spouses who would otherwise be at risk of becoming destitute–or those who are seriously at risk of not having the financial means to provide for basic living necessities. So, to be clear, the purpose of alimony is not to provide financial support to a divorcing spouse so that the spouse may maintain a comparable standard of living that existed during the marriage, but to provide monetary support to avoid placing persons in poverty following a divorce. That being said, there are four types of alimony recognized in Mississippi: (1) permanent alimony, (2) lump sum or “settlement” alimony, (3) rehabilitative alimony, and (4) reimbursement alimony. See BELL ON MISSISSIPPI FAMILY LAW § 9.02. The most prominent form of alimony is permanent alimony.
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