The process of going through a divorce can lead to significant emotional stress for you. You are facing the prospect of a life-changing event with the end of your marriage. You may not know exactly what your relationship with friends, family, and children will be like going forward. Additionally, you may have concerns about what your financial situation will look like after the divorce.
Whether your spouse was the primary wage earner in your marriage or whether you will be paying alimony to your ex-spouse, contemplating your financial future can be a stressful situation. In Colorado, C.R.S. § 14-10-114, pg. 65 lays out the rules for determining spousal maintenance (also known as alimony). However, these rules have quite a few gray areas, allowing our spousal support lawyer in Greeley, CO, to present your case. We will work hard to help you receive the most favorable settlement.
The team at The Cossitt Law Firm knows how difficult it is to go through a divorce. We want to help you deal with this situation as successfully as possible.
You and your spouse may believe you will be able to negotiate everything about the divorce without creating friction. Eventually, however, some aspect of the divorce negotiations may lead to an argument or an inability to come to an agreement. For many couples, one of the most difficult items to settle is the spousal maintenance award (also known as alimony).
Our Greeley alimony lawyer can be a big help in negotiating spousal maintenance payments. We know how to apply the law in Colorado to try to give you the best possible terms. Whether you believe you should receive alimony or believe you’ll be making payments to your ex, we are ready to provide support for you.
Our divorce lawyers can help with all other aspects of the divorce settlement as well. If your spouse has legal counsel, you will want to obtain your own to protect your rights. As soon as you choose to hire our spousal support attorney in Greeley, CO, we will be available to answer all your questions and guide you through what can be a difficult process.
Colorado state law uses the term “spousal maintenance” to describe payments one spouse makes to the other after a divorce. This term means the same thing as “alimony,” which is a term used frequently by some states. Other states use the term “spousal support.” Spousal maintenance is a type of payment that ensures that both divorced spouses are able to have a standard of living fairly similar to what they enjoyed during the marriage. If one spouse earned a significantly larger salary than the other spouse, the higher-earning spouse probably will need to make maintenance payments to improve the other spouse’s standard of living.
Sometimes, having to pay alimony may feel like a punishment, especially if you are facing accusations of some sort from your spouse and his or her lawyer. However, the State of Colorado doesn’t intend for alimony payments to be a punishment to the spouse making them. Instead, the idea of alimony is simply to give both spouses the best chance at financial stability when embarking on their new lives.
Colorado is a no-fault divorce state, as the state repealed its adultery statutes several years ago. A person seeking a divorce in Colorado only has to claim that the marriage cannot be saved.
Accusing your spouse of adultery during the marriage will not affect any aspect of the divorce settlement. It also will not affect alimony payments.
The State of Colorado has a formula it applies in divorce cases to provide a base guideline for spousal maintenance judgments. Using the online alimony calculator developed by our spousal maintenance attorney in Greeley, CO, we can give you an estimate of the alimony payment you may receive or need to pay.
However, such calculators simply provide a rough calculation of what the alimony payment could be. The law allows for application of special circumstances that affect the payment. This is where our Greeley spousal support lawyer can help with your case. Through our many years of representing people in divorce cases, we know how to apply the facts in the case for the most favorable outcome, including outlining any special circumstances.
You and your spouse will have the opportunity to try to negotiate a settlement that deals with spousal support payments. Our alimony lawyer in Greeley can represent you in these negotiations. We’ll be determining which spouse will be paying alimony, the payment amounts, and the length of the payments. The divorce proceedings will go smoother if you and your spouse are able to agree on alimony.
However, a workable settlement between the two parties isn’t always possible. When disagreements prevent a settlement, the court will consider the facts in the case and make a decision. Some of the factors the court will take into consideration when determining spousal maintenance are:
At The Cossitt Law Firm, we take the time to understand what our clients want to achieve with the alimony settlement. We learn what’s important to you so that we can present the facts of your case in the most beneficial light. We know how difficult going through a divorce can be. Let us handle the burden of negotiations and the many details involved in divorce proceedings, while you prepare for your new life.
For a case review, contact us today. We will be ready to begin working on your behalf as soon as you allow us to represent you in your divorce.
When going through a divorce where you expect to receive alimony payments, there are a few different potential outcomes. Understanding exactly which type of spousal maintenance you qualify for is important. As your case moves through the divorce proceedings, the type of alimony you could receive may change. Our spousal support attorney in Greeley can help you receive the appropriate type and amount of alimony you should have at every step along the way.
You may qualify for temporary alimony during the negotiation phase of the divorce proceedings. In this situation, your spouse would make these payments until the divorce is finalized, after which the terms of the final decree would take effect.
Temporary spousal support occurs most often when it’s clear that one spouse will be making an alimony payment to the other spouse, though the exact amount of the final payments or the length of payments may still be under negotiation. It’s also possible to receive temporary support when the alimony portion of the divorce negotiations has been settled but other issues remain unresolved. The spouse receiving the payments may not be able to wait for the money until the full negotiations conclude, so the temporary option is available.
A few other types of alimony may apply to your divorce case. These types of alimony take effect after the two sides negotiate a settlement or after a judge rules in the case. These payments range from a one-time payment to periodic payments over an indefinite period of time.
After a Greeley divorce that has an alimony judgment, both sides may be pleased with the outcome. However, after the passage of time, one side may feel that the original judgment was unfair and needs revision. Perhaps the spouse paying the alimony had a significant change in employment status, necessitating a change in alimony payments.
Our team knows how to go through the steps required to request a change in alimony payments. We can negotiate the change in spousal support payments, seeking to come to a settlement that both sides like. Or, if negotiations don’t work, we can present your argument to the judge for a change in alimony payments.
If your spouse recently received a raise at work or started a new, higher-paying job, you usually have the right to seek a higher spousal support payment. Sometimes spouses will reach an initial alimony agreement that prohibits any future changes in the payment amount, up or down, but this is rare. Most cases allow for an adjustment to the alimony payment after changes in earning power.
If you are making spousal maintenance payments and lose your job, you can request a reduction in the amount you pay. This is temporary relief, as the court will expect you to work continuously to seek a new job. Understand that you will need to continue making the original payment amount you owe until we are able to receive an official order that reduces it. Don’t simply stop making payments, or you will be in arrears. Go through the proper channels.
During our years of representing people in divorce proceedings, potential clients have asked us hundreds of questions. Some of the questions we hear most frequently include the following.
Yes, payments being made for child support – as well as money received for child support – affect the alimony calculations. As you make child support payments, alimony calculations will reflect a reduced income for you. Additionally, for the spouse who receives child support payments, his or her income will include the child support so the need for alimony will be lower.
As a general rule, the person paying alimony in Colorado will be able to reduce his or her income by the amount of the payment. The person receiving the alimony will need to claim this payment as income. However, there are exceptions to each of these. Our spousal support lawyer in Greeley, CO, always recommends consulting a tax professional about your particular situation.
Whether the court orders one spouse to make alimony payments to the other or the couple comes to an agreement through negotiation, payments become legally binding. Colorado does have multiple rules in place that enforce payment of spousal support. Our Greeley alimony lawyer can help you seek payment through wage garnishment or payments from another source of income of your ex-spouse. You may be able to receive interest on the money owed as well.
If we can show that your spouse did not disclose all income in the initial financial filings, we can ask the judge to change the payment award. If your spouse truly tried to hide income, the courts take such allegations very seriously. If your spouse recently received a raise at work or a bonus, it’s possible this money should be considered in your alimony award, too. We can request a new ruling regarding your alimony payment, based on this new information.
According to Colorado Rev. Stat. §14-10-114, pg. 86, generally if your spouse chooses to remarry, you no longer have to pay alimony. However, there are some circumstances in which the person paying alimony may need to obtain a court order to put an end to the payments. Our spousal support lawyer in Greeley, CO, can help you with the process of ending these payments legally.
We understand the challenges involved with filing for divorce. No one goes into a marriage expecting to end up in a divorce, but it does happen. If you and your spouse decide to divorce, it’s important to have your own representation. Your spouse may hire an attorney who can make sure all the paperwork meets the legal requirements in a divorce. However, they will be protecting your spouse’s interests, not yours.
When you hire The Cossitt Law Firm to represent you, we will defend your position in all negotiations regarding the divorce. Whether your divorce involves alimony, child support, child custody, annulment, or a division of assets, our team is ready to handle your case.
Some of our clients have a great relationship with their ex-spouse, leading to an easy settlement process. Frequently, though, conflicts from the marriage bubble over during divorce negotiations. These problems manifest themselves in significant arguments that detract from negotiations. They can cause some unkind comments between the two parties, heightening emotions.
Not only can you count on our team to treat you with the respect you deserve, but you will also find that we carry this professional attitude throughout negotiations with others and in hearings that occur in court. We treat everyone involved with respect, and we will demand that the other side treat you with respect. We will fight hard for your wants and needs from the divorce settlement and the alimony decisions, but we do so in a professional and focused manner.
Contact our Greeley spousal support attorney today for a confidential consultation. The Cossitt Law Firm works tirelessly to help our clients receive the outcome they’re seeking.
This calculator is based on the new 2019 Colorado maintenance guideline. Many additional factors will be considered by the Court when determining if an award of maintenance is warranted.
Commonly called alimony, the court awards spousal maintenance when the judge in a case feels as if it’s necessary to help one spouse when the other spouse can afford it.
