Dealing with alimony

When people divorce in North Carolina, alimony or spousal support may be an issue. In many cases, one spouse will be ordered to make monthly alimony payments to the other, and these payments may be ordered on either a time-limited or an indefinite basis. Courts consider a number of factors when determining whether to order spousal support in a particular case. These factors may include such things as the length of the marriage, the total gross income of each spouse, whether a nonworking spouse has the education and background needed to enter the workforce and the age of the parties. When the marriage has been a long one and there is a large disparity between the incomes of the two spouses, alimony may be likely to be ordered.