The end of your marriage on Roanoke may not necessarily end your obligation to continue to support your spouse (especially if you were the primary income earner in your home). Indeed, many in your same position have come to us here at Spencer Law PLLC expecting to have to pay alimony for the rest of their lives. You may not mind having to support your soon-to-be ex-spouse in the immediate aftermath of your divorce, but to be compelled to continue to pay them indefinitely may have you worried.
Fortunately, alimony is not designed to be a permanent means of financial assistance. Rather, it is meant to help your ex-spouse transition into their post-divorce life and continue to enjoy the same quality of life that the two of you achieved together until such time as they are able to support it on their own. To accomplish this, the state offers different types of alimony. These include:
- Rehabilitative alimony: This type of alimony obligation is only meant to continue until such time as your ex-spouse can secure gainful employment
- Alimony pendent lite: This is also known as alimony during litigation, and is only paid up until your divorce is finalized (after which the need for further assistance is revisited)
- Permanent alimony: This type of alimony obligation has no predetermined termination date
Yet even attaching the word “permanent” to alimony is misleading. Such obligations end when your ex-spouse remarries. They might try to continue it by choosing to cohabitate with a new partner, yet per Virginia’s Domestic Relations Code, proof that they have been cohabitating for more than one year is often enough to end your obligation to them.
You can discover more about post-divorce issues by continuing to browse through our site.
