Do I Have to Pay Alimony if My Former Spouse Lives with a New Partner?

Florida law states that alimony or spousal support is meant to address a former spouse’s financial needs. If the spouse enters into a “supportive relationship” with another person, the court presumes that they don’t need alimony anymore. So, if a former wife moves in with a new partner, the former husband can petition the court to stop paying alimony. In this article, we’ll discuss a real case in which the former husband asked the court to eliminate his alimony burden after his former wife moved in with another man.

Background of the case 

After the parties dissolved their marriage, the former husband was ordered to make alimony payments to the former wife. However, after the final judgment, the husband filed a petition for a modification of alimony, citing that the former wife entered into a “supportive relationship” with another man. The husband claimed that this supportive relationship was comparable to marriage, thereby negating the need for alimony.

The trial court heard the petition for a modification of alimony and determined that the former wife had indeed entered into a supportive relationship as defined by Florida law, where the two parties shared financial resources together. However, the trial court refused to make a modification of alimony, despite determining that a supportive relationship existed.

Unhappy with that result, the former husband appealed the court’s ruling, citing that it abused its discretion by failing to modify or terminate alimony in light of the existence of a supportive relationship.

The appeal

The Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed the decision of the trial court. In making its ruling, the appellate court emphasized that the Florida Statute section 61.14 provides that the modification and/or termination of alimony will occur if the obligee is in a supportive relationship, which reduces their need for support. Although the law provides broad discretionary powers to trial courts, these powers must always be exercised logically.

In this case, the appellate court ruled that the trial court erred in its decision not to terminate alimony payments. Although the trial court found that a supportive relationship existed, it failed to modify the alimony award. In making its ruling, the appellate court emphasized that the existence of a supportive relationship necessarily means that the need of the obligee had been altered. Although the law does not require the trial court to terminate the award, the existence of a supportive relationship requires a meaningful review of the award by the court.

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Source:

caselaw.findlaw.com/fl-district-court-of-appeal/1096318.html