Spousal Maintenance is a Sticky Calculation

Spousal maintenance, known as alimony, usually goes one of two ways. Either no spousal maintenance is necessary because you and your partner earn about the same amount. Or the higher-earning ex will pay alimony for a set timeframe. The length of maintenance is variable depending on the facts.

There is no magic formula for spousal maintenance in the state of Washington. Several factors are considered—including income, the length of marriage, lifestyle, and the ability of the receiving spouse to get back into the workforce. Since a wide range of outcomes is possible, it’s up to some creative lawyering on both ends.

No matter what side of the spousal maintenance equation you’re on, the overall goal of the court is to leave both parties on fair—but not necessarily even—playing fields after the divorce.

Spousal maintenance really looks at need and ability. The idea behind it is that the non or lower wage-earning spouse should receive money for some time period to allow that person to get back into the workforce or build an asset base. If it’s a “silver divorce,” one spouse might be too old to return to work, and long-term maintenance or a very disproportionate asset split could result.

Especially in high asset cases, you might need the help of our financial experts or CPAs who can analyze your asset base. We also engage vocational experts to evaluate underemployed partners.

How much you will get—or how much you’ll need to pay—depends heavily on your legal advocate. Due to the complete uncertainty of spousal maintenance and how hard it is to change after the fact, you need to take a strong position backed by expert opinion. Our extensive courtroom experience gives us a good idea how judges view requests for spousal maintenance.