The Divorce Lawyers at Arnold & Wadsworth offer a free consultation. With offices in Salt Lake City and Ogden, Utah we have divorce and family law attorneys ready to aggressively protect your rights. Below is an explanation of a recent Utah Court of Appeals case decided concerning alimony.
There was a recent case that decided and explained different types of alimony;
“Alimony awards come in different varieties. See, e.g., Wells, 871 P.2d at 1038–39 (analyzing court’s ability to award temporary alimony); Bell v. Bell, 810 P .2d 489, 493 n. 3 (Utah Ct.App.1991) (“The purpose of rehabilitative alimony is in the short run to close the gap between actual expenses and actual income to enable the receiving spouse to then be better able to support herself when the alimony and schooling end.”); Petersen v. Petersen, 737 P.2d 237, 242 n. 4 (Utah Ct.App.1987) (observing that “reimbursement” alimony is sometimes appropriate). And several of those variants are not considered permanent alimony awards. See Wells, 871 P.2d at 1039 (indicating that temporary alimony is separate and distinct from permanent alimony).”
Beal v. Beal, 2013 UT App 105
In your case you might need “transitional alimony” and the court explained the difference between transitional alimony and permanent alimony as follows;
“While the award here was not expressly characterized as a temporary award, the plain meaning of the phrase “transitional alimony” and the clear intent of the divorce decree demonstrate that the award was not meant to be permanent. “Transition” is not synonymous with permanence, but rather relates to “a passage or movement from one state, condition, or place to another.” See Webster’s Third New Int’l Dictionary 2428 (1993). Therefore, the decree’s “transitional” award is, by definition, an award that is subject to change. Within the framework of this divorce decree, which calls for an alimony review after two years and following the exchange of information that would permit the calculation of a permanent alimony award, an award intended to be reviewed and changed cannot reasonably be viewed as permanent.”
Beal v. Beal, 2013 UT App 105
As you can see from this quote from the case there are different types of alimony and you need to make sure in your divorce that the right type of alimony is given depending on your facts in your divorce case. This is both true for the man or woman in the divorce. For example, if you are the one obligated to pay alimony you need to make sure that you categorize the alimony correctly to make sure you can make it tax deductible and to make sure you are paying under correct guidelines. If you do not have both in place you are set up to fail.
Our divorce lawyers at Arnold & Wadsworth are here to provide you with the professional service you deserve. The divorce attorneys at Arnold & Wadsworth stay current on divorce laws and divorce trends. Divorce involves all facets of the law and therefore you need the divorce lawyers at Arnold & Wadsworth. Call today (801) 475-0123 for a free consultation.
