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Hi, everyone. I’m Dr. Michael Mantell with another edition of Family Law Matters, and I’m privileged to be joining Bonnie Rabinovitch-Mantel, the founder and managing partner of the Primus Family Law Group. Hi, Bonnie.

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Hi, Michael. How are you doing today? Terrific. Thanks very much.

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How are you? I’m good. I’m good. It’s hot.

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Bonnie, question of the day that someone wrote in and asked about, and that is all about alimony. Some of the myths about alimony, specifically, they’re writing about, is it for life? How does the state of California calculate it? And is it an absolute right of mine to receive alimony? So this is from someone who’s on the receiving end of alimony. So that’s what we’re going to talk about today, all about the myths of alimony.

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What are some of the myths? Well, first of all, in California, we don’t call it alimony. We call it spousal support. So that’s one way it’s different than what you see on the East Coast or on TV.

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Number two, there’s two different kinds of alimony. There’s interim alimony, temporary alimony while the proceeding is pending, and permanent alimony, which is alimony that comes after the judgment. Temporary spousal support during the pendency of the proceeding is actually calculated very much like child support.

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All the numbers are plugged into that calculator called the DISSO master that all the courts use, and the number is spit out, and it’s allocated between child support and spousal support. And that’s usually what the payor, be it man or woman, will be paying based on the disparity of income and the time shared with your children if you have children, or just based on the disparity of income if you have no children. And that is what is paid.

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Usually at the end of the case, you’ve been separated for a period of time. The recipient of support is supposed to be on some measure of notice that they’re going to need to start doing a little bit for themselves. If they’re already working and maximized at their earnings, that’s one thing.

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But if they’ve been a homemaker and they are not working or they’re underemployed, they’re only working a few hours a week, the court starts to ask them to make due, try to make due, try to better themselves. So when it becomes permanent spousal support, there is expected to be some sort of decrease in the support you’re getting on an interim basis and the support you’re getting going forward. Things that go into the determination, well, first of all, permanent spousal support is discretionary.

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So now we’re no longer looking at a calculator and a formula and an amount that’s spit out. It is completely up to the judge’s discretion. And it’s based on several factors that determine what is the marital standard of living.

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Marital standard of living is, you know, how much income was brought into the house by whom, what are the age of the parties now, whether there’s a workforce for what he or she was doing. There’s a whole bunch of factors that go into what is the marital standard of living, how many vacations, whether somebody couldn’t work because they were taking care of children at the time. And then there’s also whether or not this person has the ability to work, education, age, and how close they are to their skillset, meaning how long ago did they go to school and when was the last time they worked.

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Some people may have to undergo vocational evaluations to determine what they could earn if the other side believes they should be imputed with a certain amount of income, meaning income attributed to them based on ability and opportunity to earn. And those are all factors that can go into the determination of permanent spousal support. There’s also something called a Gavron warning, which is an actual warning given in orders that say, hey, you’re getting support, but you need to find a way to become self-supporting.

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The law says within half the length of the marriage for short-term marriages, so anything under 10 years, and then it’s discretionary after 10 years. So after 10 years, you are right, Michael, it’s meant to be permanent, but the payor does have the right to go back after a reasonable amount of time, again, somewhere around half the length of the marriage and say, hey, what are we doing here? Other factors come into play. If you get divorced later on and you’re closer to retirement, you can’t be required to work beyond the age of federal retirement.

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That’s a change in circumstances. So all of these things play into the determination and the ongoing issue of spousal support. Obviously, if the receiver of spousal support remarries, he or she is no longer entitled to spousal support, correct? Correct.

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Okay. Now, I think most of us think about the man paying the woman. That’s probably the way it’s been for many, many, many decades, but that’s changing.

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There are a lot more women who are the breadwinners in their homes. So give an example of that. Let’s talk about that.

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Well, I am the breadwinner in my home. So it was a choice that was made a long time ago that my husband would be able to stay home and our children would not have to go into daycare. And his employment allows him to work more from home.

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And it happens to be that my job, I make more money. So God forbid we were to get divorced, I would be the payor of spousal support. And we have been married longer than 10 years.

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So it does come down to whoever’s making more is going to wind up paying more, paying some. And it is an absolute right to receive that, correct? No, we have about a minute left. It is discretionary when it’s on a permanent basis.

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Now, it depends on your circumstances. Somebody could be making a million dollars a year and somebody could be making $500,000 a year. A judge may determine that that person who’s making less doesn’t need spousal support.

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So there is a discretionary element of it. Got it. So for all of our listeners who are making a million dollars and a half a million dollars, it’s going to be for the judge.

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For the rest of us, Bonnie Rabinovitch-Mantel and Primus Family Law Group is a place to turn for some guidance and answers. Bonnie, thanks so much for tackling this interesting question today. Thanks, Bonnie.

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See you next time. Bye, Michael.