Types Of Spousal Support In Texas

Often it is said that there is no “alimony” in Texas; however, while it is true that there is no statutory or common law spousal payment called “alimony” in this state, there are three spousal maintenance payment types in Texas that are similar to the concept of alimony:

• Temporary Spousal Support;
• Spousal Maintenance; and
  
• Contractual Alimony

Temporary Spousal Support

Temporary spousal support is an equitable remedy that is often ordered by the court after a temporary orders hearing. The general purpose of temporary spousal support is to make up any shortfall between the amount of necessary monthly expenses of the nonpaying spouse, and the other income sources available to him or her. Often divorce causes one spouse not to have sufficient resources to pay for that spouses’ current or future household.

If the court finds that one spouse does not have sufficient assets to meet his or her necessary monthly expenses, and that the other spouse has enough resources to pay extra, it is likely that the spouse with greater assets will be ordered to pay temporary spousal support while the divorce is pending.

Spousal Maintenance

Spousal maintenance is a statutory remedy created by the Texas legislature that allows for a court to award payments to a spouse after divorce for a brief period of time under very limited circumstances. The legal remedy of spousal maintenance is codified in Chapter 8 of the Texas Family Code.

How To Determine Spousal Maintenance In Texas

Spousal maintenance payments ordered under Chapter 8 of the Texas Family Code are enforceable by contempt and may be subject to a wage withholding order issued to the paying spouse’s employer. If a  court that determines that a spouse is eligible to receive maintenance shall determine the nature, amount, duration, and manner of periodic payments by considering all relevant factors, including:

• each spouse's ability to provide for that spouse's minimum reasonable needs independently, considering that spouse's financial resources on dissolution of the marriage;
• the education and employment skills of the spouses, the time necessary to acquire sufficient education or training to enable the spouse seeking maintenance to earn sufficient income, and the availability and feasibility of that education or training;
  
• the duration of the marriage;
  
• the age, employment history, earning ability, and physical and emotional condition of the spouse seeking maintenance;
  
• the effect on each spouse's ability to provide for that spouse's minimum reasonable needs while providing periodic child support payments or maintenance, if applicable;
  
• acts by either spouse resulting in excessive or abnormal expenditures or destruction, concealment, or fraudulent disposition of community property, joint tenancy, or other property held in common;
  
• the contribution by one spouse to the education, training, or increased earning power of the other spouse;
  
• the property brought to the marriage by either spouse;
  
• the contribution of a spouse as homemaker;
  
• marital misconduct, including adultery and cruel treatment, by either spouse during the marriage; and
  
• any history or pattern of family violence, as defined by Section 71.004.

What Is Contractual Alimony?

Contractual alimony is a voluntary payment of spousal maintenance from one spousal to another spouse. A person going through divorce may agree to make regular payments to the other spouse as contractual alimony as part of the property settlement. There may be variety of reasons entering into such a voluntary spousal agreement, but it is most often used to equalize the division of marital property while providing one spouse with a steady income stream.