Alimony is one of the potentially most complicated areas of North Carolina divorce law. Alimony, sometimes called spousal support, used to be granted primarily to women who could prove that their husbands were at fault for the dissolution of the marriage and could show financial need. Modern courts focus primarily on financial need and alimony is determined by the complete discretion of a judge. This is why it is important to have an experienced divorce attorney on your side who can be an effective advocate both inside and outside of the court room.

There are two types of spousal support available to North Carolinians. The first type is called post-separation support and is a temporary alimony award based on the needs of a dependent spouse until a permanent alimony award is entered. Permanent alimony helps meet the financial needs of the dependant spouse and can be entered either before or after a divorce.

There are several factors that North Carolina judges consider before awarding alimony including the length of the marriage, the standard of living during the marriage, and the financial needs of the individuals during the time of the hearing.

Permanent alimony can be ended based on a variety of situations including:

  • The dependent spouse remarrying
  • Either spouse dying
  • The dependent spouse cohabitating as if married with an unrelated person of the opposite sex
  • Other substantial changes in circumstances

There is also a growing amount of opposition to the award of alimony in divorce cases. Opponents of alimony cite gender and pregnancy discrimination laws and the vast number of people with mid-career changes as examples of the need to abolish the alimony system. There are also many states in which alimony is capped to a certain number of years or a certain percentage of the spouses' income. For now, there is not a significant flux in the status of North Carolina's alimony laws, and an experienced alimony attorney can still help individuals make the case that they are entitled to alimony.

Source: Forbes, "Alimony Reforms Continue to Create More Uncertainty for Divorcing Women," Jeff Landers, Jan. 18, 2012