Calculating alimony is a major part of a divorce settlement. Permanent alimony is falling out of favor and family law attorney need to be able to use tools like Divorce Financials divorce financial software to evaluate different alimony offers. Let’s look at the different types of alimony.
Permanent Alimony – Many states are considering getting rid of the classic “pay until your ex dies or gets remarried” type of alimony. The reasoning is that even if the spouse gave up career opportunities in a marriage, there is still the possibility to build a new career and become self-sufficient. The court may decide that one of the temporary alimony solutions would be better for both spouses in the long run.
Limited Duration Alimony – Many spouses don’t need to do much more than find a job to become independent. Even if the spouse left a career to keep the household or raise children, it may be possible to reenter the workforce at or near the previous level. Attorneys can use Divorce Financial’s alimony buyout feature to calculate how much limited duration alimony could be worth. Some divorce and financial settlements use limited duration alimony as a tradeoff for other assets as part of the property settlement.
Rehabilitative Alimony – A spouse who needs training or education reenter the workforce may be granted this type of support. The idea is that the payor covers expenses necessary for the spouse to acquire education that might have been sacrificed during the course of the marriage. The figure might cover not only the spouse’s living expenses but also the educational expenses involved. The duration of the payments will depend on how much training is necessary.
Reimbursement Alimony – This type of support covers the classic example of someone who supported a spouse through medical school only to have the new doctor file for divorce as soon as the education is finished. A judge might determine that the supporting spouse is entitled to reimbursement to reflect the portion of the new doctor’s income. The buyout calculator makes it easy to determine how many payments and for how long would reimburse the supporting spouse for a given amount.
Divorce Financials family law software by Easysoft Legal Software simplifies the calculation of even the most complicated alimony situation. It also allows attorneys to balance alimony and child support payments to find tax optimized settlements. Find out more about Divorce Financials and how it streamlines your family law practice.
