As a dedicated Rochester Divorce Attorney, I often speak to clients about what they need to know about spousal support and maintenance. Give this a read about understanding spousal maintenance then give us a call to set up your first consultation with our Rochester family law attorney.

New York law contains a formula specifically designed to determine spousal support. Essentially, that law is a calculator into which the parties’ incomes are entered, and a built-in calculation determines whether or not spousal support is warranted.

Regarding long-term spousal, courts will consider the results obtained from that calculator and many other factors.

As a general rule, if the two parties earn approximately the same amount, the chance that one will be ordered to pay spousal support to the other is greatly reduced.

Spousal support is most often ordered when a large discrepancy exists between the incomes of husband and wife.

I am often asked by clients who are unable to pay for their divorce because they do not have access to the family money and are looking to have their spouse pay for it.

There’s nothing one spouse can do to force the other spouse to pay legal fees. One can apply to the court asking the judge to consider directing the other spouse to pay all or part of the legal fees. The court will usually base its decision on the income and resources of both parties.

If both people make approximately the same amount, the court will require each person to be responsible for their own fees. The court’s decision is based on the parties’ income and resources – and whether either party has deliberately delayed the proceedings. A court may make an initial determination as to whether a person is entitled to assistance with legal fees, but often delays that decision until later.

Odds are spousal maintenance is just one of the many worries you have weighing heavy on your mind right now. We want to give you the representation for all of your family law matters including child custody, child support, mediation, and more.

When you and your spouse are splitting up and money is a concern, before you discuss spousal maintenance or alimony, you should first discuss mediation which is a way through divorce that can save you a lot of money in the long run which might impact your feelings about spousal maintenance.

If the divorce is very simple – uncontested – the typical fee is about $2,000, plus filing fees.

If issues involving children or money require negotiation – or court intervention – a typical fee can be about $4,500, but may be more or less. Every case is different.

If you and your spouse are able to discuss your concerns before you file and are ready to deal with these concerns uncontested, then you are going to be able to save yourselves money which is something that we can help you better understand when you meet with us.

Do you want to learn more about understanding spousal maintenance? Contact dedicated Rochester Divorce Attorney Michael Ranzenhofer for help.

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