ALIMONY

alimony (al-<<schwa>>-moh-nee).1. A court-ordered allowance that one spouse pays to the

other spouse for  maintenance and support while they are separated, while they are involved in a

matrimonial lawsuit, or after they are divorced. • Alimony is distinct from a property settlement.

Alimony  payments  are  taxable  income  to  the  receiving  spouse  and  are  deductible  by  the  payor

spouse;  payments  in  settlement  of  property  rights  are  not.  The  Supreme  Court  has  held

unconstitutional a statute that imposed alimony  obligations on  the  husband  only. Orr v. Orr, 440

U.S.  268,  99  S.Ct.  1102  (1979).  —  Also  termed  spousal  support;  maintenance.  Cf.  CHILD

SUPPORT;  DIVORCE  AGREEMENT.  [Cases:  Divorce    208,  230.  C.J.S.  Divorce  §§  315,

320–331, 336–339, 369, 394–400, 422–426, 481–487.]

“ ‘Alimony,’ which signifies literally  nourishment or sustenance, means, in a general sense,

the allowance required by law to be made to a spouse from the other spouse’s estate for support or

maintenance, either during a  matrimonial suit or at its termination, where the fact of  marriage is

established  and  the  right  to  a  separate  main-tenance  is  proved.  Similarly  stated,  alimony  is  the

allowance which a party may be compelled to pay to his or her spouse for maintenance when they

are living apart or after they have been divorced.” 27B CJS Divorce § 306, at 102–03 (1986).

alimony in gross.Alimony in the form of a single and definite sum not subject to modification.

— Also termed lump-sum alimony. [Cases: Divorce    241. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 395–397.]

alimony  pendente  lite  (pen-den-tee  lI-tee).  [Latin  pendente  lite  “pending  litigation”]  See

temporary alimony.

final alimony.See permanent alimony.

lump-sum alimony.See alimony in gross.

periodic alimony.See permanent alimony.

permanent   alimony.Alimony   payable   in   usu.   weekly   or   monthly   installments   either

indefinitely or until a time specified by court order. • This kind of alimony may usu. be modified

for changed circumstances of either party. It terminates upon the  death of either spouse and usu.

upon  the  remarriage  of  the  obligee.  —  Also  termed  final  alimony;  periodic  alimony.  [Cases:

Divorce    230. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 369, 394–400, 422, 425–426, 481–487.]

provisional alimony.See temporary alimony.

rehabilitative alimony.Alimony  found  necessary to assist a divorced  person in acquiring the

education or training required to find employment outside the home or to reenter the labor force. •

It usu.  has time limitations, such as a maximum  of  one  or two years. — Also termed short-term

alimony; transitional alimony. [Cases: Divorce    247. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 373–377, 405–413.]

reimbursement alimony.Alimony designed to repay a spouse who during the marriage made

financial contribu-tions that directly enhanced the future earning capacity of the other spouse. • An

example  is  alimony  for  a  wife  who  worked  full-time  supporting  herself  and  her  husband  with

separate-property  earnings  while  he  earned  a  medical  degree.  [Cases:  Divorce    231.  C.J.S.

Divorce §§ 370, 379.]

temporary  alimony.Interim  alimony  ordered  by  the  court  pending  an  action  for  divorce  or

separation  in  which  one  party  has  made  a  claim  for  permanent  alimony.  —  Also  termed

provisional alimony; alimony pendente lite; allowance pendente lite. [Cases: Divorce    208. C.J.S.

Divorce §§ 315, 320–331, 336–339, 422–426.]

transitional alimony.See rehabilitative alimony.

2.English law. ALIMENT. [Blacks Law 8th]