Indiana Spousal Maintenance Attorneys

Our Indiana Alimony Lawyers Can Help Get You the Best Spousal Maintenance Agreement Possible.

The dissolution of a marriage is a difficult and often emotionally charged process. Of all the challenges that must be addressed, the financial ones may be both the most important and the most complex. Many divorces involve a monetary award known as “alimony” or “spousal support,” which is designed to assist the economically weaker spouse during the transition to living within his or her own means. The modern term preferred in most jurisdictions — and the one recognized by Indiana law — is “spousal maintenance.”

Indiana laws regarding spousal maintenance are complicated, and making mistakes can be costly, so it can help to have an Indiana family lawyer on your side to fight for your rights. If you have questions about spousal maintenance, the New Albany, IN, alimony lawyers at Church, Langdon, Lopp, Banet Law can help. We understand the issues and can guide you through these difficult times while ensuring that you avoid costly mistakes. Whether you are the spouse who may need to pay or the spouse who may need to receive money to meet expenses, we will work closely with you and help you make the best decisions possible. We have worked with many families, and we look forward to working with yours.

Call us today at 812-725-8224 and put our experience to work for you.

How New Albany Alimony Lawyers Can Help You

Our alimony lawyers in Indiana understand the complexity of the law and how it applies to your individual situation.

Though the legal term in Indiana is spousal maintenance, our attorneys know that a client looking for an alimony lawyer intends to find an attorney who can help with the same issue. In Indiana, either spouse can be ordered to pay spousal maintenance, and the law’s use of the term “spouse” rather than “husband” or “wife” is intended to convey the gender neutrality of the payments. A typical divorce case begins with the spouses separating and one moving out of the marital home. At that point, who controls the flow of money becomes extremely critical, and maintenance may be necessary.

The amount of spousal maintenance depends upon the paying spouse’s ability to pay support and the receiving spouse’s need for support.

Indiana divorce laws allow spousal maintenance for certain situations and for limited periods of time (Ind. Code § 31-15-7-2). The traditional idea of alimony was based on factors such as the length of the marriage, the ages of the spouses, and their education levels, and the award could continue for years or even a lifetime.

Our CLLB Lawyers Can Help Negotiate a Spousal Maintenance Agreement By . . .

• Working for a fair maintenance award that can help a spouse gain financial independence as quickly as possible
• Finding evidence to help prove or disprove the need for spousal maintenance
• Negotiating a settlement between spouses who don’t agree
• Determining if an Indiana spousal maintenance award can be modified due to a substantial and continuing change in circumstances that make the existing maintenance order unreasonable
• Helping enforce a previous spousal maintenance agreement
• Arguing your case in court if necessary.

Our Spousal Support Lawyer Explains How Indiana Spousal Support Works

Indiana uses the term “spousal maintenance” instead of “alimony,” and, instead of considering the traditional factors, only awards this maintenance if a divorcing spouse cannot meet basic financial obligations due to under- or unemployment or is unable to become employed at a level to be financially self-sufficient.

Not everyone in Indiana seeking a divorce pays or receives spousal support.

According to Indiana law, an award of maintenance to be paid after the divorce is final is typically awarded only in limited circumstances. The determination of whether spousal support should be awarded depends upon the specific facts of the case. Indiana law assumes that each spouse will work and support themselves after the marriage ends, but may award spousal support if a divorcing spouse can show one of the following circumstances:

• Spousal incapacity: The spouse is physically or mentally incapacitated to an extent that affects the ability to provide self-support.
• Caregiver maintenance: The spouse has insufficient property or resources and has custody of a child whose physical or mental incapacity prevents the spouse from being employed.
• Rehabilitative maintenance: The spouse needs financial assistance to obtain training or education necessary to become employable in a position that would allow for self-support.
• If rehabilitative maintenance is requested, the court will consider:
• The education level of each spouse at the time of marriage and at the time of divorce or legal separation,
• Whether there was an interruption in the education, training, or employment of the spouse seeking maintenance as a result of homemaking or childcare responsibilities,
• The earning capacity of each spouse, including educational background, training, employment skills, work experience, and length of presence in or absence from the job market, and
• The time and expense necessary to acquire sufficient education or training to enable the spouse seeking maintenance to find appropriate employment.
• Temporary maintenance. During the period of time between the filing of the divorce and the final decree, temporary maintenance is often granted to ensure the spouse’s and children’s needs are met and to give the court time to fully hear the evidence. A court is also more inclined to grant temporary maintenance when there is a large disparity of income between the spouses and one spouse needs maintenance in order to maintain his or her standard of living.

The Intent of Spousal Maintenance

Because Indiana law assumes that each spouse will work and support themselves after the marriage ends, any order of rehabilitative maintenance is limited to a period of no more than 3 years. Rehabilitative maintenance is intended to help a spouse who gave up education or career to raise the children (or one who has a great disparity in earning power compared to the other spouse) to gain the ability to be self-supportive.

For spousal incapacity or caregiver maintenance, the court considers factors such as the financial and other circumstances of each party, and the nature and anticipated duration of the incapacity or care required for the incapacitated person. The court may order spousal incapacity maintenance or caregiver maintenance for as long as the incapacity continues.

Our Spousal Support Attorneys Can Help You Reach a Spousal Maintenance Agreement

The best solution is often for both parties to reach an agreement and avoid a costly and contentious court battle. Our CLLB spousal maintenance attorneys can help determine whether this will work in your divorce.

In some cases, spouses have already laid the foundation for how spousal maintenance will be paid in a pre-nuptial or post-nuptial agreement, which is a contract made as a condition for entering into or continuing the marriage. If this agreement is disputed by either party, the courts will evaluate the situation and determine whether the contract should be enforced.

If there is no pre- or post-nuptial agreement, our attorneys may be able to help settle the spousal support issues without going to court by negotiating and coming up with an agreement that satisfies the needs of both parties. This agreement would need to be approved by the court, which would then issue a maintenance order.

Talk to an Attorney with Expertise in Indiana Spousal Maintenance Law

The circumstances that warrant an award for maintenance in Indiana are limited. If you are concerned about how you might be affected by Indiana’s spousal maintenance laws, you want a lawyer that will be an advocate for you. Whether you are the spouse who may be required to pay spousal maintenance or the one who may need to receive it, the IN spousal support attorneys at Church, Langdon, Lopp, Banet Law will work closely with you to aggressively protect your rights and help you make the best decisions possible.

For skilled and knowledgeable representation regarding spousal maintenance orders or modification of such orders, contact us by calling 812-725-8224 today. Based in New Albany, Indiana, we proudly serve communities throughout Kentuckiana; Floyd County, IN; and Clark County, IN.