Do Fault Grounds Affect Alimony?

If you feel your spouse’s actions have wronged you, you may seek vindication by citing fault-based grounds for your divorce. Or, you may suppose it is important to create a record of your spouse’s negligence that may be relevant in future legal proceedings. Most relevantly, though, many divorce petitioners believe that pointing out their spouse’s fault may land them a more favorable outcome for divorce-related terms, such as alimony. That said, please read on to discover whether fault grounds affect the alimony order decided by the family court and how one of the seasoned Clarksville alimony lawyers at Fendley and Birch can help you get a fair and just final judgment.

Do fault grounds affect an alimony order?

Sometimes, the Tennesse family court may take into consideration your fault-based grounds when determining an alimony order. This may be especially looked into if you and your spouse were involved in a long-term marriage. Overall, though, the court cannot treat an alimony order as punitive damages; that is, to punish your spouse for their wrongdoing. Rather, this may only apply if your spouse’s fault directly impacted the finances of your marriage.

For example, say that you claim your spouse committed adultery. In hindsight, you may learn that your spouse used your marital funds to buy another individual luxury items, to take another individual on expensive vacations, and more. Under these set of circumstances, the court may order your spouse to be the payor of alimony, and possibly even inflate the amount they owe you per month, to make up for the marital funds you have already lost and can no longer split up in your property division proceedings.

Contrastingly, you may effectively prove that your spouse was and continues to be financially supported by the individual whom they are having an affair with. And so, if you are set to be the alimony payor due to extending financial statuses, the court may choose to reduce your monthly obligation.

Do fault grounds affect a child custody or support order?

In a similar sense, your fault-based grounds may affect the Tennessee family court’s child custody and support decisions if your spouse’s negligence during your marriage directly threatened your child’s best interests.

In another example, say that you cite your spouse’s abandonment issues. Here, you may claim that your spouse often left your family home and did not try to get into contact with you and your child for days, weeks, or months at a time. With this, the court may not trust your spouse to care for your child adequately, at least not without the proper supervision.

Or, you may argue that your spouse kicked you and your child out of the family home during your marriage, without any financial aid to find a new place or cover your child’s necessities for the foreseeable future. So, the court may believe that your spouse needs to make up for this lost time that they did not financially sustain your child and increase their child support obligation.

To conclude, you must be fully equipped to enter your upcoming divorce proceedings. Your preparation is incomplete without hiring one of the competent Clarksville family lawyers. Contact Fendley and Birch today.