Key Takeaways:
- Alimony is for the benefit of a spouse, and child support is for the benefit of the child.
- Alimony is generally confined to dissolution of marriage cases, and child support may come up in any case between two people who share a child.
- The duration of a child support award might be more predictable than the duration of an alimony award. This is because many child support obligations last until the child is 18, and the duration of an alimony award depends on factors such as the length of the marriage and the resources and needs of each spouse.
- While marital misconduct might not be a factor in how much child support your spouse must pay, it may be a factor in how much alimony your spouse must pay.
Alimony v. child support: 4 legal differences
Even after your marriage is over, you or your spouse might have recurring obligations toward each other and your family. Two big obligations for many divorced couples are alimony and child support. These payments may overlap in many ways, but there might be more than one significant legal difference between alimony and child support, depending on your state’s laws. We outline four legal differences below and what you might see in a family law case.
Alimony typically applies only to married couples, but child support may apply to any parent
Typically, the subject of alimony comes up only when a married couple seeks a divorce or separation. In fact, many courts base the amount of alimony they award on how long a couple’s marriage lasted. Many states also call alimony “spousal support.”
On the other hand, a parent is responsible for child support regardless of whether they were ever married to their child’s other parent. The purpose of alimony may vary from state to state, but it’s typically intended to help both parties maintain, as closely as possible, the standard of living enjoyed during the marriage and to prevent either from becoming a public charge. The purpose of child support is to ensure that both parents provide financial support for their children according to their means.
Pro tip: If your child has any extraordinary healthcare needs, you may want to have all your child’s long-term needs extensively reviewed before you start your case. When you understand your child’s long-term needs, you might have a better chance of receiving child support to cover their care after they turn 18.
Child support is a given in many divorce and separation cases, but alimony isn’t
In general, any child under 18 whose parents are no longer married or don’t live together has a right to receive child support from at least one parent. While child support may be paid to the other parent, it’s for the benefit of the child.
On the other hand, not every divorcing couple has a spouse who is eligible for alimony. For instance, a spouse may waive the right to child support if they don’t ask for it. Additionally, some states require you to have been married for a certain period of time before you can ask for alimony. Even assuming you’re eligible, courts consider many factors to determine whether alimony is appropriate, such as:
- The needs of each spouse
- Each spouse’s income or earning capacity
- The paying spouse’s ability to pay
- Whether either spouse is prevented from working due to factors such as their own health or their obligation to care for a child with special needs
- The marital standard of living
- The length of the marriage
Child support typically lasts until the child is an adult or older, but the duration of alimony is more case-by-case
Typically, anticipating how long a child support obligation will last is straightforward. In most states, children under 18 have the right to receive support from both parents. If the court orders you or your child’s other parent to pay child support, one of you will likely pay until your child reaches 18. And if your child doesn’t complete high school by 18, you or the other parent might have to pay until the child graduates high school or turns 19. However, children with certain disabilities may have the right to receive child support for the rest of their lives.
On the other hand, the duration of alimony payments may change drastically from couple to couple. According to your state’s laws, your right to receive alimony payments might depend on the length of your marriage. For example, in Delaware, alimony payments can’t last longer than half the length of a couple’s marriage unless the couple was married for at least 20 years before divorcing. And in Colorado, spouses who were married between 3 and 20 years may receive between 11 months and 10 years of alimony payments. Colorado spouses who were married for more than 20 years may receive alimony for the rest of their lives.
Alimony payments might also cease if a spouse remarries or starts living with a new romantic partner.
Pro tip: You might want to negotiate child support, alimony and property matters with your spouse before you head to court. You might be able to avoid a big fight over an unpredictable alimony award if you can forgo a significant amount of alimony in exchange for more child support or a greater share of the marital estate. But be aware, your state may not allow you to accept less child support than you’re entitled to because child support belongs to the child, not the parent.
Marital misconduct may be a factor in an alimony decision but not a factor in a child support decision
In many contentious family law cases, people want to point fingers and assign blame. However, blame doesn’t have a place in some family law decisions. For example, multiple states recognize no-fault divorce. And if you look at your state’s child support and alimony calculator or guidelines, many of the factors that determine a person’s child support or alimony obligations don’t have anything to do with either person’s marital misconduct. This is especially true with child support.
Factors courts often look at when making child support decisions include:
- The child’s standard of living during their parents’ marriage or time together
- The child’s financial needs
- The financial resources, gross income and needs of each parent
Similar factors apply when courts make alimony decisions. But a big difference is that a spouse’s marital misconduct might bar them from receiving alimony, depending on where they live. In fact, the State of Georgia doesn’t allow a spouse to receive alimony if their marriage ended because of their adultery or abandonment of their spouse.
Pro tip: Check whether your state allows fault-based divorces and what the grounds are for fault-based divorce. If you want a divorce because your spouse committed marital misconduct, the proof you need to receive a divorce might double as the proof you need to prevent your spouse from receiving alimony.
How an attorney may help
Child support, alimony and marital property matters may be intertwined in many family law cases. In light of the many possibilities in a family law case, some parties find attorney guidance helpful when trying to make sense of everything. An attorney may help you by identifying all your options for receiving financial assistance in your domestic matter and facilitating an amicable agreement between you and your spouse or your child’s other parent. An attorney might also help you identify which legal options for support may have greater consequences in your life than others.
Sources
FAMILY CODE CHAPTER 154. CHILD SUPPORT; FAMILY CODE CHAPTER 154. CHILD SUPPORT; Codes Display Text; FAMILY CODE CHAPTER 154. CHILD SUPPORT; Delaware Code Online; Section 14-10-114 – Spousal maintenance – advisory guidelines – legislative declaration – definitions, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-114 | Casetext Search + Citator; Alimony Payments – Designation of Support and Property Payments – Termination of Support – Cohabitation by Former Spouse – Modification of Support – Disposable Retired or Retainer Military Pay; Section 14-10-106 – Dissolution of marriage – legal separation, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-106 | Casetext Search + Citator; webserver.rilegislature.gov//Statutes/TITLE15/15-5/15-5-3.1.htm; Section 107.025 – Irreconcilable differences as grounds for dissolution or separation, ORS § 107.025 | Casetext Search + Citator; Section 14-10-115 – Child support guidelines – purpose – determination of income – schedule of basic child support obligations – adjustments to basic child support – additional guidelines – child support commission – definitions, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-115 | Casetext Search + Citator; Section 19-6-15 – [Effective Until 1/1/2026] Child support guidelines for determining amount of award; continuation of duty of support; duration of support, Ga. Code § 19-6-15 | Casetext Search + Citator; Section 19-6-1 – Alimony defined; when authorized; how determined; lien on estate of party dying prior to order; certain changes in parties’ assets prohibited, Ga. Code § 19-6-1 | Casetext Search + Citator; https://legacy.utcourts.gov/opinions/appopin/Rule%20v.%20Rule20170803_20150633_137.pdf; Section 14-10-115 – Child support guidelines – purpose – determination of income – schedule of basic child support obligations – adjustments to basic child support – additional guidelines – child support commission – definitions, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-115 | Casetext Search + Citator; FAMILY CODE CHAPTER 154. CHILD SUPPORT; View Document; Title 23 – PA General Assembly; Title 23 – PA General Assembly; Section 3105.18 – Ohio Revised Code | Ohio Laws; FAMILY CODE CHAPTER 8. MAINTENANCE; https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title81/Chapter4/81-4-S502.html?v=C81-4-S502_2024090120240501
