Are there any guidelines in Florida for alimony, like there are for child support?

There are factors to be considered under Florida law for determining alimony, but no formula-based guidelines like the ones used when calculating Florida child support.

Child support is addressed in F.S. 61.30. Child support is determined by a statutory formula, or “guidelines.” Child support guidelines allocate a certain amount of monthly child support to each parent. The biggest variables in the calculation are the incomes of the parents and the number of overnights each parent exercises under their parenting plan.

Alimony is addresed in F.S. 61.08. Unlike child support, there is no mathematical formula to determine alimony. Instead, the statute provides a framework for determining the amount, duration, and type of alimony that may be awarded in a particular case. The statute also provides factors that the court must consider when making a decision about alimony. The factors that are considered when determining alimony include the length of the marriage, the standard of living established during the marriage, the financial resources of each party, the earning capacity of each party, the age and health of each party, and the contributions each party made to the marriage. As a result, determination of alimony is more subjective (and therefore uncertain) than determination of child support.

Michael DeVoe is a divorce attorney in Orlando, Florida practicing contested divorce, uncontested divorce, timesharing, visitation, custody, paternity, child support, injunctions, and other family law cases.