Brentwood Alimony Attorneys
For spouses going through a divorce, the issue of alimony may be crucial. A party requesting alimony may worry he or she will not be able to afford to live independently without a temporary period of support. Meanwhile, a party being asked to pay alimony may worry such an award could prove too costly or would treat the payor unfairly.
Nobody wants to get treated unfairly in the divorce process, and the issue of alimony is one that can easily raise questions about the need for alimony and the ability to pay, and the overall fairness of ordering one party to pay spousal support to the other for months or years after the marriage is dissolved by the court.
The family law attorneys at Beal | Crutcher understand these fundamental issues when it comes to the question of alimony. Our Brentwood divorce lawyers have represented both husbands and wives who sought alimony or were being asked to pay. We’ll take the time to listen to your needs, explain what the law says about alimony in a Tennessee divorce, and work to get a result that respects your needs and interests in this vital area. Learn more about Tennessee alimony law below, and call Beal | Crutcher for help with alimony and other divorce issues in Brentwood.
Tennessee Alimony Categories
Tennessee law recognizes five different kinds of alimony that could be awarded in a divorce. These categories are described below.
Alimony Pendente Lite. This is a temporary award ordered by the judge while the divorce proceedings are ongoing, to enable a divorcing spouse to afford an attorney and support himself or herself during the months it takes to get a divorce finalized in Tennessee. Alimony pendente lite terminates when the marriage is dissolved and may or may not be replaced by another form of alimony at that time.
Transitional Alimony. As the name suggests, transitional alimony is awarded for a short period to give a former spouse time to establish a new residence and adjust to a new, single-income lifestyle.
Rehabilitative Alimony. Courts award rehabilitative alimony when convinced that the requesting spouse needs additional time to become self-supporting, often by obtaining job training or completing some vocational courses or higher education.
Alimony In Futuro. When a divorce follows a lengthy marriage where one of the spouses did not work and would find it difficult to enter the workforce, the court might award permanent alimony payments that allow the receiving party to maintain the same standard of living established during the marriage.
Alimony In Solido. If the division of marital property was uneven, the court can even it out by making a lump sum alimony award known as alimony in solido. This happens when the court cannot divide a particularly valuable asset or if the parties agree one party should receive an asset without dividing it (like giving one party possession of the family home rather than requiring it to be sold and the proceeds divided) while offsetting the asset’s value through an alimony award. This type of alimony is also known as lump sum alimony. Even though the court makes a lump sum award, the judge can still order it to be paid in installments rather than all at once.
Factors Used to Decide Alimony Issues in Tennessee
Alimony is not an automatic feature of every Tennessee divorce. Instead, one party has to make a motion for alimony and provide evidence showing the party needs alimony. The judge will evaluate the request against a list of twelve factors to decide whether alimony is appropriate and whether the other party has the ability to pay it. These factors are listed below:
- Each party’s age and mental condition
- Each party’s physical condition
- How long the marriage lasted
- How much each party is able to earn and what financial resources each one has
- How much education and vocational training each party has
- Each party’s separate (non-marital) property
- How the marital property is being divided
- The standard of living which was created during the marriage
- Whether the custodial parent needs to stay home with the children rather than get a job outside the home
- How much each party contributed to the marriage either through income or household services, and whether one party contributed to the other’s education or career
- Each party’s relative fault in the breakdown of the marriage
- The tax consequences of an alimony award and any other relevant factors
Help With Alimony in Your Brentwood Divorce
Whether you are seeking alimony in your divorce or being asked to pay, our Brentwood family law attorneys can make sure you are well-represented, treated fairly and not taken advantage of when it comes to alimony or other issues in your divorce. We take the time to listen to your needs and help you achieve your goals. For help with alimony and other matters in a Brentwood divorce case, call Beal | Crutcher at 615-861-2304 for skilled and knowledgeable advice and representation from a team of dedicated Brentwood family law attorneys.
