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Spousal Maintenance (Alimony)

Imputing Wages in Spousal Maintenance Cases

With the economy, the way it is, and more people out of work now than at any time in recent memory, imputing wages is becoming a bigger part of all support cases, including cases involving spousal maintenance claims.

What is Spousal Maintenance?

Maintenance is support paid from one spouse to another. It used to be called alimony. While there is a formula that may apply in some divorce cases, the formula only applies to temporary awards of maintenance – awards that expire when the divorce becomes final. There is no formula for maintenance beyond the entry of the final divorce decree.

Calculating Maintenance Based on Income

One of the biggest factors courts most often consider is the income of the parties. What do you do when one of the parties is out of work? Prior to the current recession, courts would often “impute” income to the unemployed party based on what they earned before – sometimes more and sometimes less.

Now, we are seeing courts cut some slack for the unemployed parties when it comes to imputing income, in recognition that it really is hard to find a job out there. Occasionally, judges will decide that in this particular case, no income should be imputed at all.

Since imputed income can have a significant impact on support orders, having a full discussion with the court about the present likelihood of a party earning an income is critical. Try our spousal maintenance calculator to get an estimate of what your payments may look like.

Modern Family Law

Modern Family Law’s team of experienced family law attorneys takes a compassionate approach to the practice of family law. Using innovative technology to create an effective and efficient process for our clientele, our attorneys approach each case as a collective effort to find the best long-term solutions for each family. Our attorneys currently practice in Colorado, California, and Texas. Click the following link to view all of our family law locations. For more information please give us a call or fill out a short form online to sign up for a free consultation today! Let us make a positive difference in your life.

Posted December 16, 2014
Updated for 2022‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ by: MFL Team


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