Skip to main content
914 285 9797    140 Grand Street, Suite 800, White Plains, New York 10601
Spousal Maintenance (Spousal Support/Alimony) Spousal Maintenance (Spousal Support/Alimony)

Spousal Maintenance (Spousal Support/Alimony)

In New York, a Court’s determination regarding whether or not a party is entitled to Spousal Maintenance, and if so, how much and for how long, is governed by the “Spousal Maintenance Guidelines” in the Domestic Relations Law.

As a starting point of its analysis, the Court will apply one of two formulas set forth in the “Spousal Maintenance Guidelines” utilizing the income of both parties. The “Lower Formula” applies when the higher income spouse is also paying child support. The “Higher Formula” applies when either child support will not be paid, or the higher income spouse is receiving child support. The income of the higher income spouse (payor spouse) is currently capped at $228,000.00 per annum when applying each formula.

The result of the applicable formula is the “presumptively” correct amount of spousal maintenance to be paid by the higher income spouse. However, the Court may deviate from this presumptively correct amount of spousal maintenance, if the Court determines the results are unjust or inappropriate.

In deviating from the presumptively correct amount the Court may consider fifteen (15) factors:

  1.  the age and health of the parties; 
  2. the present or future earning capacity of the parties, including a history of limited participation in the workforce;
  3. the need of one party to incur education or training expenses;
  4. the termination of a child support award before the termination of the maintenance award when the calculation of maintenance was based upon child support being awarded which resulted in a maintenance award lower than it would have been had child support not been awarded;
  5. the wasteful dissipation of marital property, including transfers or encumbrances made in contemplation of a matrimonial action without fair consideration; 
  6. the existence and duration of a pre-marital joint household or a pre-divorce separate household; 
  7. acts by one party against another that have inhibited or continue to inhibit a party's earning capacity or ability to obtain meaningful employment. Such acts include but are not limited to acts of domestic violence; 
  8. the availability and cost of medical insurance for the parties; 
  9. the care of children or stepchildren, disabled adult children or stepchildren, elderly parents or in-laws provided during the marriage that inhibits a party's earning capacity; 
  10. the tax consequences to each party; 
  11. the standard of living of the parties established during the marriage; 
  12. the reduced or lost earning capacity of the payee as a result of having forgone or delayed education, training, employment or career opportunities during the marriage; 
  13. the equitable distribution of marital property and the income or imputed income on the assets so distributed; 
  14. the contributions and services of the payee as a spouse, parent, wage earner and homemaker and to the career or career potential of the other party; and 
  15. any other factor which the court shall expressly find to be just and proper. In some instances, determining the amount, if any, of a spousal maintenance award may be a simple straight forward matter.

In other cases, when the payor spouse makes significantly more income than the $228,000.00 per annum statutory cap, the analysis is more complex and requires a detailed analysis of the statutory factors listed above, including but not limited to the standard of living during the marriage. Further, determining a party’s income for spousal maintenance purposes may require a searching and detailed analysis. For instance, one spouse may receive significant benefits through an employer for the payment of what would otherwise be personal expenses, or a spouse may pay for personal expenses through their business, which may be included in their income for spousal maintenance purposes. Further, it may be the case a spouse had significant income from other sources in addition to their earned income.

The “Spousal Maintenance Guidelines” also provide for guidance with respect to the duration of a party’s spousal maintenance obligation based upon the length of the marriage calculated from the date of marriage through the date of commencement of an action for divorce as follows:

  • For marriages between 0 and 15 years: The Court may award spousal maintenance for a term between fifteen percent (15%) and thirty percent (30%) of the length of the marriage.
  • For marriages between fifteen (15) and twenty (20) years: The Court may award spousal maintenance for a term between thirty percent (30%) and forty percent (40%) of the length of the marriage.
  • For marriages over twenty (20) years: The Court may award spousal maintenance for a term between thirty percent (30%) and forty percent (40%) of the length of the marriage.

The Court may elect to apply or not apply the above durational guidelines or deviate in determining the length of a Spousal Maintenance award, and utilize the same factors set forth above for determining whether a deviation from the presumptive amount of Spousal Maintenance is warranted.

The attorneys at Kitson, Haffner & Hyde, LLP have the knowledge and experience necessary to thoroughly assess these complex issues in order to determine what an appropriate spousal maintenance obligation should be and guide our clients accordingly.