If you have been through a divorce and are paying spousal support, commonly known as alimony, you might not be happy to find out that your ex is living with someone else and still taking your money. This is not an easy topic to discuss, but our Salt Lake City alimony attorney wants you to know that you have rights when it comes to continuing these payments. Today, Emy A. Cordano wants to talk about the alimony process as well as some ways you may be able to stop paying.
What is alimony in Utah?
Spousal support is the way in which the spouse with greater financial resources supports the spouse with lesser means. There are various types of alimony in Utah, including:
- Temporary alimony: This is typically paid to a spouse who needs support while the divorce is being finalized. Typically, this type of alimony is terminated once the divorce is finalized. However, another type of alimony could be ordered.
- Rehabilitative alimony: This type of alimony is typically granted with the goal of helping the spouse with lesser means gain the skills necessary to support themselves financially. This could include allowing them time and financial assistance to get through vocation or college classes or other job-skills classes.
- Permanent alimony: This type of alimony is granted to the spouse of lesser means on a long-term basis and generally only terminated if the recipient remarries, cohabitates with someone else, or passes away.
Do you have to pay if your ex is living with someone else?
In Utah alimony is stopped when the supported spouse begins to cohabitate with another person as long as it can be proven. It does not matter whether the receiving spouse suddenly marries the person they are living with, a cohabitation case may still be made for the period of time prior to the marriage. The cohabitation is usually enough to end alimony payments as long as certain factors can be proven.
Last year, a Utah judge said that one woman owed her ex-husband years of backpay for alimony because he was able to prove she was cohabitating with someone else. The husband had been paying $7,000 a month.
In the ruling, we learned that proving cohabitation can be a bit difficult. The following must be proven in these cases:
- There was/is a shared residence.
- Money is being shared between your ex-spouse and the cohabitant.
- Your ex-spouse was/is being intimate with the cohabitant.
This is usually accomplished through private investigators hired by the spouse paying the alimony.
We want to help you through this situation
If you are paying alimony, but you suspect that your former spouse is living with someone else or avoiding getting married, you should seek legal assistance as soon as possible. Emy A. Cordano is ready to get to work on your case. She understands the complexities of the divorce and alimony process and wants to ensure you are being treated fairly and not paying more than you should be. Do not get stuck making payments that the law says you no longer have to make. When you need a Salt Lake City alimony attorney, you can contact us by clicking here or call us at (801) 901-8159 for an initial consultation.