Alimony

Alimony is the payment of money from one spouse to the other. This is done to provide an adequate income stream for the spouse who was economically dependent on the other spouse. The parties are free to agree on any Alimony payment they wish. Alimony may be ongoing, such as a monthly payment, or an up-front lump sum, or just simply not paid at all, depending on how the parties agree. If the parties cannot agree on alimony, the judge may grant an alimony payment to either the husband or the wife, depending on the situation, or may not grant alimony to anyone. The modern trend is for courts to award less alimony than was awarded in the past because both parties typically work outside the home and are less economically dependent on the other spouse.

The Court may consider many factors in determining alimony including but not limited to the standard of living established during the marriage, duration of the marriage, financial resources of each party and the contribution of each party to the marriage (examples are homemaking, child care, education and helping the other spouse to build their career). Marital fault is generally not a factor in deciding whether alimony should be awarded because the purpose of alimony is not to punish one spouse and reward the other. However, in Georgia, if the spouse requesting alimony committed adultery or deserted the other spouse and the adultery or desertion was the cause of the divorce, then they cannot claim and receive alimony.