Determining Who Is the Supporting Spouse for Alimony

The supporting spouse may be required to pay alimony to the dependent spouse in North Carolina. It’s easy to see which spouse supports the other in some cases, but other cases are more difficult to analyze. Dependent Spouse A dependent spouse is actually substantially dependent upon the other spouse for maintenance and support or is substantially in need of maintenance and support from the other spouse.  If you can pay all of your expenses and live the same lifestyle you lived while married—without receiving any alimony—you may not qualify as a dependent spouse. In these cases, the court would not examine the other alimony issues such as the multi-factor test. Instead, no alimony would be awarded. Supporting Spouse A supporting spouse is the spouse upon whom the other spouse is actually substantially dependent for maintenance and support or from whom such spouse is substantially in need of maintenance and support. If the dependent spouse lives off of…

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