When Does Alimony End

Different forms of alimony have different endings.

1. Permanent, periodic alimony ends upon the death or the remarriage of the recipient. It can also end upon the recipient entering into a romantic relationship; we’ll talk about that a bit more in a moment. Permanent, periodic alimony also ends upon the death of the payor (i.e., his estate is not responsible to continue making payments after his death).

2. Lump sum alimony (as support) ends when the full amount due has been paid.

3. Lump sum alimony (as property division) also ends when the full amount due has been paid.

4. Rehabilitative alimony ends at the conclusion of the time period it has been awarded. In other words, when it is awarded, the divorce decree will say that it is payable for thus-and-such number of months or years. When that time period has concluded, rehabilitative alimony ends. However, if the recipient dies or remarries (or enters into a romantic relationship as discussed below) prior to the end of the time period, then the rehabilitative alimony ends when that event occurs.

5. Reimbursement alimony ends when the full amount due has been paid.

6. Payment of designated expenses ends when the decree provides. This is a tricky one.

7. Hybrid alimony ends whenever the divorce decree says that it ends. Remember that hybrid alimony is a creature created by the parties during their negotiated divorce settlement. So they will be sure to include in their contract very specific terms about when the alimony ends.

Romantic Relationships and the De Facto Marriage

As we have discussed, some forms of alimony automatically terminate upon the recipient’s remarriage. Naturally, some recipients decide to not remarry precisely so that their alimony will continue.

But what happens when the recipient, while not exactly remarrying, enters into a romantic relationship that is about as close to a marriage as it can be, except without the formal exchange of wedding vows?

When the recipient is clearly in a relationship, and the evidence is clear and direct that she is avoiding remarriage solely to continue receiving alimony, the ex-husband can apply to the court to find that she is in a de facto marriage, and terminate her alimony. This can be tougher to prove than it sounds. In one case, the ex-wife wore her boyfriend’s diamond ring, traveled with him, and they spent the night together for a week or more at a time, and yet the court held that she was not in a de facto marriage.

Cohabitation with a romantic partner can also trigger a termination of alimony. It is not enough that the ex-husband prove that the lovers are in a sexual relationship. Their relationship must also be one of mutual support, which alters the ex-wife’s financial needs. The judge is entitled to presume that such a relationship exists if the lovers are cohabiting. Note that “cohabiting” means more than living together on weekends or a few nights each week.

Discharging Alimony Obligations in Bankruptcy Court

Can alimony obligations be discharged in bankruptcy? We don’t practice bankruptcy law, so the fine details of how this works is a question we’ll leave to the experts in that field. But generally speaking, alimony is or is not dischargeable, depending on the purpose of the alimony. If the alimony was intended for the support of the spouse, it qualifies as a “domestic support obligation” (which is the term used in bankruptcy court). Child support and alimony that is intended to support the (former) spouse are domestic support obligations, which cannot be discharged in bankruptcy.

On the other hand, if the purpose of the alimony was to aid in the distribution of assets, then it is generally not considered to be a “domestic support obligation,” and it is dischargeable. But there are tricks and traps that attend this maneuver.

Modification of Alimony

As we mentioned earlier, some forms of alimony are modifiable. By modifiable, we mean that sometime after the divorce has been finalized, a party can ask the judge to increase, decrease, or terminate the alimony award. The forms of alimony that can be modified are:

1. Permanent, periodic alimony

2. Rehabilitative alimony

3. Payment of designated expenses (if the divorce decree is written in such a way to include this possibility)

4. Hybrid alimony (again, if the divorce decree is written to allow subsequent modifications)

If it is important to you that the alimony not be modifiable, then be sure that your negotiations proceed accordingly. But remember that whether you are the payor or the recipient, there are unknown possibilities out there that might make modifiability a good option for you. This is something that you will want to carefully discuss with your lawyer.

So when can modifiable alimony be modified? There are three general rules:
(1) it can be modified if there has been a clear and substantial change in circumstances of either (former) spouse;
(2) a payor cannot premise his modification request on his voluntarily worsening his financial picture (i.e., quitting his job, incurring new debt, starting a second family);
(3) if there has been a clear and substantial change in circumstances, the judge will look at both parties’ new (i.e., as of the time of the modification trial) financial status. If the parties’ relative financial position is more or less the same, alimony will not be modified. The judge will review the Armstrong factors discussed above in the modification trial.

There are a few what-if scenarios that often come up in alimony modification cases.

• What if the original divorce decree did not provide for alimony? Can you later go to court and ask the judge to modify the decree so that it now provides for alimony? No.

• What if, instead of going to court to modify alimony, we just agree to change the alimony obligations. Will that out-of-court arrangement hold up at the courthouse? Probably not. Especially if you are the payor, it is a terrible mistake to not have a lawyer draw up the papers to make your agreement official.

• What if we agree to a new arrangement, which forgives alimony that accrued, but the payor never paid. Is that legal? No. Generally speaking, agreements to waive past due, unpaid alimony are not enforceable in court. Same rule for unpaid, past-due child support.