Cleveland Family Law Attorneys

How Is Spousal Support Determined In Ohio?

When people in Ohio decide to divorce, there are many factors that go into the decision and it is not one that is taken lightly. However, after the decision is made to initiate a divorce, there are many more very important decisions that need to be made as the couple separates their lives. These decisions include determining which parent will have custody of the children, how much child support one parent may pay, divide all their assets and property, and also determine whether one spouse will receive spousal support from the other.

When making these determinations, the lives of the couple will be analyzed to determine first whether a spouse is in need of support and if so how much they need and for how long. In making these determinations the court will look at a number of factors.

These include, but are not limited to, the income levels of each spouse, the total number of assets the spouse will have after the divorce, whether one spouse has stayed at home to care for the children, the education levels of each spouse, the duration of the marriage, the standard of living during the marriage, the age and health of each spouse, tax consequences of the spousal support for each spouse and others.

As one can see, there is not a calculator to determine whether a spouse will need spousal maintenance or how much they may need. So, these determinations are very fact-specific to the couple’s marriage. It is also not something that will be ordered in every divorce. There are many divorces in which neither spouse will pay spousal support.

When people in Ohio make major decisions in life, there are many factors they analyze to make sure they are making the right decision. This is true when decisions are made during a divorce as well. One of these decisions is spousal maintenance. These are very fact-specific and complicated decisions that analyze a number of aspects of the couple’s marriage. Experienced attorneys understand the factors used to make spousal maintenance decisions though and may be able to guide one through it.