Indiana is not an alimony state, but there is a legal remedy known as spousal maintenance. It is still common for one spouse to eventually become financially dependent on the other over the course of a marriage. For example, if you purchase a fixer-upper and hope to make money on its eventual sale, you might stay home to start working on the house while your spouse continues to work.
If you have children, it could be much more cost-effective for one parent to stay home with those kids instead of the family trying to find a way to cover professional childcare services, which can be both unreliable and expensive. Staying home can benefit your whole family.
However, staying home to support the family through unpaid labor can leave you at a disadvantage in the event of a divorce. After all, re-entering the workforce after several years can mean dealing with diminished earning potential, and a changed employment market in which you may no longer feel competitive. Do you have the right to request spousal maintenance, or alimony, as part of an Indiana divorce?
The Three Types Of Spousal Maintenance
In Indiana at the time of a final divorce or legal separation, you have three options:
- Rehabilitative maintenance, which is intended for the spouse who stays at home to raise the children. This is meant to afford the non-income earning spouse an opportunity to update their training or obtain training to re-enter the workforce. This may only be awarded for a period of up to 3 years.
- Permanent Maintenance, which is intended for the permanently disabled spouse who does not receive enough in marital assets to support himself/herself. There are many complicated legal factors to be aware of regarding permanent maintenance.
- Maintenance due to a disabled child, which is intended in the event that one parent cannot re-enter the workforce due to a severely disabled child who requires one parent to remain in the home to care for him/her.
Each form of maintenance has different legal factors and evidentiary requirements. An attorney can provide this information to you.
