It is of course not uniformly the case that divorcing Michigan spouses exit their marriages on a financially equal footing. Notwithstanding that state law mandates a fair division of assets between splitting partners, one divorcing spouse sometimes has a financial future that looks brighter than what seems likely for the other.
That can be for a host of reasons. Some spouses hold impressive professional credentials because their partners worked hard to put them through school. Some now have lucrative incomes, while their spouses have currently unattractive career prospects because they stayed home for years raising children and managing household affairs.
Relevant family law exists to remedy that inequity and to ensure that one ex-spouse does not unfairly suffer in the aftermath of divorce. An online overview of alimony – also termed spousal support or maintenance – notes that it is sometimes awarded by courts to promote fairness. Its driving goal is “to balance the income and needs of the parties … and to support the recipient spouse in becoming self-sufficient.”
We duly stress on our website at the established Bloomfield Hills family law firm of Hauer & Snover that that Michigan law “does not give clear-cut guidelines or a calculator for spousal support.”
That means this: Alimony outcomes will differ in every case, with courts routinely being guided and influenced by proven legal advocates who can persuasively present a client’s case.
Questions and concerns can understandably arise regarding alimony-linked factors and awards. They can be directed to an experienced and empathetic team of family law attorneys.
