5 Different Aspects of Alimony in Mississippi Divorce

Alimony is not a one-size-fits-all proposition. There are different kinds of alimony, and each comes with its own set of rules. We’ll review those in a moment, but first let’s review the different ways that one form of alimony is different from the other:

1. Alimony can be for a fixed, definite duration, or it can be indefinite

2. Alimony can be paid in one single payment, or it can be paid in installments, such as monthly

3. Alimony can be for a fixed, definite amount, or it can vary in amount

4. Alimony can be subject to modification by subsequent court order, or it can be non-modifiable

5. Alimony can be tax deductible, or not (this one is tricky)

1. Alimony can be for a fixed, definite duration, or it can be indefinite

Alimony can be for a specified number of payments. For example, if a judge ordered “12 monthly payments of $1,000 each,” there would be no more alimony after those 12 payments had been paid.

Alimony can also be indefinite, which is not the same as “forever.” Usually, indefinite alimony will end upon the death of the recipient. It can also end upon the recipient’s remarriage or if she starts living with someone (we’ll discuss that later in this Guide).

2. Alimony can be paid in one single payment,
or it can be paid in installments, such as monthly

Alimony can be due on a specific date. For example, a “one lump sum” award might require payment of “$50,000, due and payable on January 1, 2021.” Under that arrangement, once the $50,000 is paid, there is no more alimony.

The more typical arrangement is for alimony to be paid in installments, usually monthly, but not always. We have seen payments due quarterly (every three months), semi-annually, and annually. How many payments must be paid is dependent on whether the award is definite or indefinite, as described in the previous section.

3. Alimony can be for a fixed, definite amount,
or it can vary in amount

If you think about it, this really isn’t an aspect of alimony. It’s more of a combination of the first two aspects discussed above. You can go from one payment to any number of payments you choose (or indefinitely), payable per week, per month, per year, etc.

As long as it is payable for a definite number of payments, you can calculate the total amount to be paid. For example, 60 monthly payments of $3,000 each is $180,000. Monthly payments of $2,500 for 12 years is $360,000.

Moreover, the amount of each payment does not have to be the same. For example, a divorce might provide:

1. 24 monthly payments of $3,000 each; then

2. 24 monthly payments of $2,000 each; then

3. 60 monthly payments of $1,000 each, for a total of $180,000.

Where it gets tricky is if you don’t provide for a specific dollar amount, but rather a formula. For example, the amount due could be a fixed percentage of the payor’s income, or else a fixed percentage not to exceed a specified number, or no less than a specified number. In most cases, using formulas is not recommended, but we’ve seen it done, such as when the payor has an extremely volatile or unpredictable income.

4. Alimony can be subject to modification by subsequent court order
or it can be non-modifiable

Nobody has a crystal ball that predicts the future with perfect accuracy. You don’t know what the future will hold for your ex or for yourself.

If you are receiving alimony, it might happen that your financial needs increase far more than you ever expected at the time of divorce. In that case, you would like to go back to court and get an increase in alimony. Wouldn’t it be nice if the divorce papers let you get a do-over, based on your new financial circumstances?

Then again, your ex could lose his job, or his business could fail, or he could go bankrupt. Wouldn’t it be nice if he could not get a do-over, based on his new circumstances?

This is the crux of the modification aspect of alimony. Shall the arrangement be that alimony cannot be modified, no matter what happens? If it is done this way, you have the security of knowing what the alimony will be, come what may.

Then again, shall the arrangement be that alimony can be modified, if the award becomes completely unfair to you due to circumstances beyond your control? Suffice it to say that this arrangement is a double-edged sword, since your ex might be the one going back to court to get a do-over.

5. Alimony can be tax deductible, or not

This one is a little tricky because of a change in the federal tax laws. The old rule, for divorce decrees entered before 2019, was that the person paying alimony could possibly deduct the amount of alimony that he paid from his taxable income, in which case the recipient (usually the wife) would have to include the alimony payments as taxable income, i.e., she would have to pay taxes on her alimony.

To be clear, not every divorce decree entered before 2019 had this feature of “tax-deductibility,” but at least it was possible. But then the law changed. Under the 2017 “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,” commonly known as the Trump Tax Cut, divorce decrees entered after 2018 could not provide for tax-deductible alimony.

So to recap: If the divorce decree was entered before 2019, alimony in that decree might be tax-deductible. But if the divorce was entered in 2019 or later, alimony could not be tax-deductible.

There is a loophole, sort of. Due to some arcane rules that have to do with federal lawmaking, this aspect of the Trump Tax Cut is only in effect through 2025. Maybe this provision will be renewed, but if it is not, the phrasing of post-2018 divorce decrees might have a certain zombie aspect — meaning that even though your divorce decree is never changed, alimony that has never been tax-deductible suddenly becomes so in 2026 and thereafter. Make sure that your lawyer is aware of this.