Some ex-spouses remain financially connected to each other after divorce through alimony, or spousal support. These payments can be a considerable expense for paying parties and a huge help for recipients. Depending on the support agreement’s provisions and state laws, alimony obligations may be subject to modification or termination under certain circumstances.
Modification of Alimony
Most states allow divorcing spouses to include a provision in their alimony agreement to limit or prohibit any modification of alimony. This is true whether the parties themselves draft the agreement or a judge decides spousal support. Most spousal support agreements will include the circumstances under which alimony may be revisited and possibly modified, but if an agreement has a no-change provision, neither party will be able to change the payments or duration.
A modification provision in an alimony agreement may be drafted in almost any way that the parties and the court agree is appropriate. However, modification provisions commonly require that alimony payments will be modified only if both parties agree or if one ex-spouse’s income changes by a certain amount. Modification is also determined by state law, so alimony agreements without modification provisions may still be subject to change, although a few states disallow any modification after a divorce is final. Many states allow for modification when a judge agrees that a party’s significant change in circumstances warrants modification. A court is more likely to approve a modification if both parties agree that the modification is fair. It is very unlikely that a judge will accept a change in spousal support when one party has voluntarily taken a much lower-paying job to avoid paying support or to receive more support.
Modification Without an Order or AgreementParties who attempt to modify or terminate spousal support without the agreement of the other party or a court order may face court action for failing to pay alimony and consequences such as:
Alimony modifications may be permanent or temporary. A court is more likely to order a temporary change in spousal support when the situation that warrants the change also appears temporary. For instance, a court may order a temporary reduction in spousal support obligations after the paying party loses their job, but only until the party finds new employment or a certain amount of time has passed, whichever is sooner.
Termination of Alimony
As with modification, many alimony agreements include termination provisions. Often, a termination provision will be nothing more than the specific date when spousal support will cease. However, when support is contingent on another circumstance, such as rehabilitative support paid to an ex-spouse while they go back to school, the termination provision may be less definite. The agreement instead might list the contingent circumstances and give the paying ex-spouse an opportunity to go to court if those circumstances have changed. In the rehabilitative support example, this may mean that the paying spouse could ask the court to terminate alimony if they suspect that the recipient spouse is deliberately delaying the completion of their course.
A court is less likely to grant early termination of alimony that is not based on financial need, like reimbursement support.
Many states have implemented laws that terminate alimony under certain conditions. For example, alimony may terminate automatically in some states when the recipient reaches the age of retirement. Alimony may also terminate in some states when the recipient has cohabitated with a partner for a specific period of time, or when the recipient remarries. Some state laws impose specific time limits on alimony unless an exception applies. Most alimony obligations automatically end when the recipient or the payer dies, although a life insurance policy, trust, or other source of funds may secure payments beyond death. State law will determine whether a paying spouse may simply cease payments or whether they must file a motion with the court to officially terminate their obligations.
If a recipient ex-spouse would like to extend alimony past the predetermined termination date, they must file a motion for an extension with the court before the termination date. Otherwise, a court may not have jurisdiction to alter the support end date after it has passed.
Last reviewed September 2024
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