Spousal Maintenance
In Texas, there is no court-ordered alimony.
Spouses can agree to the payment of alimony but this would be called contractual alimony and not court-ordered alimony.
However, a Court may order spousal maintenance under very limited circumstances:
1. The parties must have been married 10 years or longer.
2. The spouse seeking spousal maintenance lacks sufficient property to provide for the spouse's minimum reasonable needs or clearly lacks earning ability in the labor market to provide for that spouse's minimum needs.
The amount of spousal maintenance is the LESSER of $2500 per month or 20% of the spouse's average monthly gross income. Generally, spousal maintenance may not last for more than 3 years.
I encourage you to contact me if you have any questions regarding spousal maintenance. There are other factors to be considered to determine if a spouse is eligible for spousal maintenance and the Courts in Texas look at the facts of each case to determine eligibility.
Generally speaking, if both parties are working at the time of divorce and making a sufficient income to support themselves, then spousal maintenance will not be ordered by the Court.