Irvine Spousal Support Attorney

If you earn significantly more income than your spouse, or if your spouse earns significantly more income than you, then spousal support (or “alimony”) will likely be a key aspect of your divorce. In California, long-term (and potentially permanent) spousal support may be awarded to a spouse who lacks the means to financially support himself or herself at the same level as during the marriage after the parties’ divorce, and “temporary” spousal support may be awarded during the divorce process as well. Due to the complexities involved in calculating spousal support – and even determining whether an award of alimony is appropriate at all – it is important to work with an Irvine spousal support attorney who can help you every step of the way.

Our lawyers have decades of experience representing divorcing spouses in Irvine and Orange County. We guide our clients through their divorces step-by-step, helping them make informed decisions throughout the process. We have successfully handled some of Orange County’s – and California’s – highest income divorces, and we are thoroughly knowledgeable about the strategic, financial and practical considerations involved in negotiating favorable spousal support awards.

Calculating Spousal Support During a California Divorce

When determining whether an award of temporary or long-term spousal support (or both) is appropriate, the primary factor is the spouse’s income disparity, if any. Spousal support is intended to allow each spouse to maintain the standard of living enjoyed during the marriage to the extent possible; and, if both spouses are leaving their marriage with equal (or roughly equal) earning capacity, then an award of spousal support may be unwarranted.

Our Irvine Spousal Support Attorney Outlines California’s Alimony Laws

If the circumstances of a divorce warrant payment of spousal support, then the amount and duration of payment must be determined based on the list of factors contained in section 4320 of the California Family Code. The first of these factors also focuses on the spouses’ respective earning capacities, and places emphasis on the ability of the spouse who will receive support to become self-supporting in the future:

“The extent to which the earning capacity of each party is sufficient to maintain the standard of living established during the marriage, taking into account . . . [t]he marketable skills of the supported party; the job market for those skills; the time and expenses required for the supported party to acquire the appropriate education or training to develop those skills; . . . the possible need for retraining or education to acquire other, more marketable skills or employment[; and] . . . [t]he extent to which the supported party’s present or future earning capacity is impaired by periods of unemployment that were incurred during the marriage to permit the supported party to devote time to domestic duties.”

The additional spousal support factors listed in Section 4320 include:

• The extent to which the recipient contributed to the supporting spouse’s education, training or career development;
• The supporting spouse’s ability to pay, taking into account earning capacity, income from all sources, assets and standard of living;
• The spouses’ respective needs based on their current standard of living;
• The spouses’ respective assets and debts, including “separate” property and their respective shares of their “community” estate;
• The duration of the marriage;
• The recipient’s ability to earn income without “unduly interfering” with his or her post-divorce child-rearing responsibilities;
• The spouses’ respective ages and health conditions;
• Any documented history of domestic violence;
• Tax consequences;
• The “balance of hardships” to each spouse;
• The “goal that the supported party shall be self-supporting within a reasonable period of time,” if feasible; and,
• Any criminal record related to the recipient’s abuse of the supporting spouse or a shared child.

If you have questions or concerns about any of the above-mentioned factors, contact an Orange County spousal support lawyer at our firm as soon as possible.

Determining the Duration of Alimony in California

An obligation to pay spousal support will typically end when:

• The death of either party;
• The recipient remarries or enters into a registered domestic partnership; or,
• A specified date agreed to by the parties or designated by the court;
• The court approves a modification to the parties’ existing spousal support award.

Of course, the parties can stipulate that spousal support payments will end earlier. Common approaches to placing a shorter duration on spousal support payments can include:

• Having the payor make a “lump sum payment” in lieu of future spousal support;
• Awarding support until the recipient obtains the necessary education, training, or certification to become self-sufficient (provided that he or she continues to work toward the targeted goal in good faith); or,
• Awarding support until the recipient finds suitable employment (provided that he or she does not intentionally remain unemployed or underemployed rather than actively pursuing viable career opportunities).

In cases in which the spouses are unable to agree to the amount and duration of spousal support, the California courts will generally award support for at least half of the duration of the spouses’ marriage, when the marriage was less than 10 years. In the case of a marriage that lasted 10 years or longer, the courts have the option to award spousal support with no end date. However, even in this scenario, the award of alimony is not necessarily permanent. The supporting spouse can petition for a reduction or termination if there is evidence to suggest that continued payment of the court-ordered amount is no longer justified.

While going to court is an option, it will often be in both spouses’ best interests to negotiate a resolution. Not only does this allow for the structuring of an award that is specifically tailored to the circumstances at hand, but it allows for tax planning and consideration of various other practical issues as well. Divorcing spouses also have the option to blend spousal support and property division negotiations, and this type of integrated approach often provides the greatest opportunity to achieve a mutually-agreeable outcome.

Schedule an Appointment with an Irvine Spousal Support Attorney

If you are contemplating a divorce and would like more information about what you can expect with regard to spousal support, our Irvine spousal support attorney would be happy to meet with you to discuss your situation in confidence. To schedule an appointment at our matrimonial law offices in Orange County, please call 949-474-0800 or inquire online today.

Common Questions About Spousal Support in an Orange County Divorce

How is spousal support calculated in California?

There are two different exercises and they run on different rules. Temporary support, which covers the period while the case is pending, is usually set with guideline software that runs off the two incomes. Long-term support, ordered at judgment, is not formula-driven at all. The court weighs the factors in Family Code section 4320, which include the marital standard of living, each spouse’s earning capacity, the extent to which one spouse contributed to the other’s education or career, the duration of the marriage, and the ability of the paying spouse to pay. Because there is no formula, two judges given the same numbers can reasonably land in different places, which is why the evidentiary presentation on those factors matters more than the arithmetic.

What counts as income when a spouse is paid in bonus, commission, or equity?

More than base salary. Bonus, commission, restricted stock that vests, option exercises, deferred compensation, distributions from a closely held business, and perquisites the company pays that the household consumes can all figure into support. The practical difficulty is timing and volatility. A base salary supports a fixed monthly order; a bonus that varies year to year often does not, and is handled instead by a percentage allocation applied when the bonus is actually received. Getting that structure right at the outset avoids a return to court every time compensation changes shape.

Does spousal support end after a set number of years?

It depends heavily on the length of the marriage. For a marriage of less than ten years, courts commonly look to support for about half the length of the marriage as a reference point, though it is a reference point and not a rule. For a marriage of long duration, generally ten years or more, the court ordinarily retains jurisdiction over support indefinitely rather than fixing a termination date at judgment, unless the parties agree otherwise. Support can also be stepped down over time, tied to a specified event, or terminated on the supported spouse’s remarriage.

Can a spousal support order be changed later?

Yes, unless the parties agreed to make it non-modifiable. Modification requires a material change of circumstances since the last order, such as a genuine change in either income, a retirement, a disability, or a change in the supported spouse’s earning capacity or need. Cohabitation with a non-marital partner creates a rebuttable presumption of decreased need. A voluntary reduction in income, by contrast, is rarely a change of circumstances, and courts can and do set support on earning capacity rather than actual earnings where the reduction looks deliberate.

Can a spouse with substantial separate assets still receive support?

Not necessarily. California law allows a court to decline support entirely where the party seeking it has separate property or other resources sufficient for that party’s proper support. That question turns on the size and liquidity of the separate estate measured against the marital standard of living, and it is litigated far less often than it could be. In cases involving inherited wealth, trust distributions, or a large separate-property portfolio, it is worth analyzing directly rather than assuming support follows automatically from the income disparity.

About the Firm

Seastrom Tuttle Murphy Dockstader is a family law firm in Irvine representing clients throughout Orange County, and in Los Angeles County. The firm practices family law exclusively. Its attorneys include Fellows of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and of the International Academy of Family Lawyers, and attorneys certified as specialists in family law by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. Call 949.474.0800 to discuss a spousal support matter with the firm.