Oftentimes one of the more contentious issues in a divorce is the issue of spousal support, also known as “alimony”. This may be because people don’t want to pay support or they feel like they’re owed a lot more support. However, it might also be because there are no clear rules that say exactly how much a party will pay. Unlike child support, which is oftentimes determined by a calculator, there is a lot of nuance and courts have a fair amount of flexibility in awarding spousal support.

Three Types of Spousal Support

ORS 107.105(d) provides Oregon courts with three types of spousal support: maintenance spousal support, transitional spousal support, and compensatory spousal support. The most common type of spousal support in Oregon is maintenance spousal support. This is support that is intended to allow both parties to maintain a reasonably similar lifestyle to the one they enjoyed during the marriage. In determining an appropriate amount of maintenance support, courts will look at each party’s earning capacity, the length of the marriage, the parties’ age, the parties’ monthly living expenses, and the lifestyle that the parties enjoyed during the marriage.

Transitional support is possible where one spouse needs education or training to reenter the job market or advance their career opportunities. How long support is paid is usually tied to the training or education that the party needs. In setting transitional support, courts generally consider the length of the marriage, the parties’ work skills, and the financial needs of the parties while the spouse receiving support is completing the education or training.

Compensatory support is the least common type of support. It is an available tool for the court where one spouse has made some kind of contribution to the other party’s ability to earn and there isn’t really any other way to compensate that spouse for the contribution. Again, it is not common, but the court can consider the length of the marriage, the nature and length of the contribution, and if there is some other way to compensate the party for their contributions. The type of spousal support helps define the purpose of the spousal support, which will really help define the amount and duration of support as well as how support might possibly be modified in the future. Accordingly, the type of spousal support is an issue in a divorce that can have significant importance.

Amount and Duration of Support

The amount and duration of support depends on the specific circumstances of the case and, while there are rules of thumb that some judges will use, there is no set mathematical formula for calculating support. Spousal support is usually set in monthly payments for a certain period of time (for example: $750 per month for 48 months). However, it can also be set as a lump payment or include “step-downs” over time. Again, the amount and duration of support is largely influenced by the type of support. If a court award maintenance spousal support, the amount of support will really depend on the financial needs of the spouse receiving support and also the funds available to the spouse who is paying support. A court will look at what a party reasonably needs each month to survive and how much each party has to contribute to those needs and usually will not order an amount that would be impossible for the party to pay or that would prevent them from supporting themselves while they are paying support.

The duration of maintenance spousal support is usually dictated by the length of the marriage, but also guided by a goal of seeing the parties become financially independent from each other. Long-term marriages can result in indefinite support awards, but otherwise the award may be limited to the amount of time that a court believes that the party needs to get back on his or her feet. Transitional support really depends on the specific program or education that the spouse is trying to gain. For example, if the parties have been married for 20 years, but one spouse only needs a year of support to complete a degree that will allow that spouse to have enough income to support themselves, then transitional support may be limited to only a year. Compensatory might be a lump payment or broken out over a shorter period of time. It will
really depend on the specific contribution that the party is being compensated for and, again, isn’t terribly common.

The Limits of Spousal Support

There are also limits to spousal support that parties should keep in mind. Parties should be aware that spousal support, like many other things in a divorce, can be
modified. If there has been an unexpected change in financial circumstances, a court can modify spousal support. This may mean that, even if you are awarded or ordered to pay spousal support, it may not last forever. One of these unexpected changes can be if a party loses their job or is otherwise unable to pay support or support themselves. If this happens, even if the Court doesn’t terminate support, it may end up being difficult to actually enforce the court’s order of the person ordered to pay
support doesn’t actually have the money to pay support. Further, spousal support usually doesn’t last forever. Courts in Oregon do try to, when possible, encourage financial independence and will limit spousal support to encourage parties to become self-sufficient. Finally, spousal support usually doesn’t cover the cost of all of the spouse’s needs. For most families, there is usually a finite amount of money to go around and it’s usually not enough to support two households. Hence, even large awards of spousal support won’t alleviate all of a parties’ financial burdens.

While spousal support can be a great thing, it’s not some special combination of words that will just resolve all of a person’s financial concerns. There are limits to what can be ordered and life can certainly get in the way of even the most well-intentioned spousal support awards. Being prepared with a plan for how you will support yourself with or without an award of spousal support will help you make sure that you are in control of your future.