Should i waive alimony

If you are considering waiving alimony, it is important to note the factors and reasons for alimony awards, to understand if you would even qualify for such an award. There are a few types of alimony awards: temporary alimony, bridge the gap alimony, rehabilitative alimony, durational, and permanent.

As previously mentioned, temporary alimony is not able to be waived as it is awarded during the pendency of the proceedings. However, bridge the gap alimony is awarded in cases to assist a spouse in the transition from becoming married to single. This award lasts no longer than 2 years. Rehabilitative alimony provides financial assistance to a spouse to allow them time to reenter the workforce, receive education, and acquire skills necessary in order to become financially independent.

This award allows them to regain the knowledge and skills to become an expert in their field once again. Durational and permanent alimony are longer in duration and require more evidence of specific needs that may not be able to be fulfilled by other alimony awards.

The difference between the two is the duration, with durational alimony it may not exceed the length of the marriage, while permanent alimony is in fact permanent.

When factoring an alimony award, the court looks first to see if there is a need and a subsequent ability to pay. If so the court will then balance these factors to determine the proper type of award as well as the necessary amount.

When looking at these factors, it is clear that they are based around the marriage itself. Therefore, if you are contemplating waiving your alimony in a prenuptial agreement this may not be in your best interest. You will not be able to know if you fall into a long-term, moderate or short term marriage, if you retained your employment, had children, your earning capacity may look significantly different, or your standard of living may be much higher than initially anticipated.

But again, and I cannot reiterate this enough, if the prenuptial agreement is contested, it will be up to the Judge to decide and everything is fair game at that point. Waive Alimony in a Prenuptial Agreement. Facts and actions that occur during the marriage can also come in to play.

On a side note, you cannot waive alimony in a post-nuptial agreement. By Andriea Aden June 12, Related Posts. For example, you can tie the amont of support that would be paid to the length of the marriage and other reasonable conditions. Simply inform your attorney that you are not interested in receiving support and they will ensure the correct language is built into your divorce decree. Some alimony cannot be waived. The most common example of this is emergency or temporary alimony granted to the lesser earning spouse during the divorce.