Property Division (Part III)—Alimony in Mississippi
Is this all I get?
Being a Mississippi divorce lawyer, I get questions about whether a spouse is entitled to alimony. The answer is it depends. After the equitable distribution of the marital estate (see previous post), the chancellor will look at the whole spectrum of property available to both spouses—the marital property divided as well as the non-marital property under each spouse’s control. If one party is left with a deficit, then the chancellor is to consider awarding alimony. In Mississippi, there are four different types of alimony—periodic, lump sum, rehabilitative, and reimbursement.
Periodic alimony is a monthly payment which terminates automatically upon the death of the person paying or the death or remarriage of the receiver. It can be modified if there is a material change in circumstances—either by increasing, decreasing, or terminating it. Finally, it is taxable to the recipient and deductible by the payor.
Lump sum alimony, as the name implies, is a sum of money payable in a single lump sum or paid out in installments. It may not be modified absent fraud. If the payor dies before the amount is paid, it becomes the obligation of the payor’s estate. It is not taxable to the recipient as it is considered a property settlement in a divorce.
Rehabilitative alimony is “awarded to parties who have put their career on hold while taking care of the marital home.” It is intended to allow “the lesser party to start anew without being destitute in the interim.” Lauro v. Lauro.
Reimbursement alimony is the most uncommon form of alimony. It is intended as repayment to a spouse who put their partner through school where the financial rewards of the education have not materialized due to the short interval between the person obtaining the degree and the divorce.
In the following posts, I will discuss each of these types of alimony more in-depth as well as the factors the chancellor looks at to determine whether an award of alimony is justified.
