When Can Alimony Be Modified In Utah?
It is important for Utah couples to know how they should effectively proceed when alimony is being pressed one way or the other.
While divorce may be a trying time for anyone in Utah, one of the more likely areas for disagreement comes with the determination of alimony payments. Alimony payments are determined by the court based on a set of legal criteria and by the judgment of the presiding court, and for this reason, the final plan that is set may not be in someone’s favor. As much as the state legislature is designed to provide judgment that is fair and applicable to most scenarios, one truth that always remains is that there may be unpredictable developments in the future that change the applicability of the plan. In these circumstances, it is possible to modify, or even to terminate, an alimony payment plan that has become obsolete.
The conditions required for modification
Divorce modification can take a number of different forms, and when it focuses particularly on alimony, there are some very specific qualifications that need to take place for it to happen. The simplest way to boil it down is to say that either party may petition the court for a modification if material changes have occurred which the court deems to be substantial. There is also some special circumstances that allow alimony to be terminated. One of these is if the recipient of the alimony cohabits with someone after the alimony has already been issued. Death of the recipient or the recipient getting remarried are both grounds for the termination of an alimony order. In any of the above instances, the paying spouse must petition the court.
When alimony cannot be modified
As promising as it may seem to know that alimony payments are not always set entirely in stone, it is also important for ex-couples to understand some of the restrictions set upon them. For instance, if the potential recipient somehow becomes dramatically more in need, to the point where such needs did not exist before the conflict, that is not grounds to begin a new set of alimony payments.
Key elements in alimony process
One thing people should not forget is that in order for a petition to be heard, it has to be filed within a year of the filing party becoming aware of the recipient’s cohabitant or significant other. It is also important to note that however long the duration may be extended till; alimony cannot outlast a marriage itself.
Those in Utah who are looking to get a better grasp of their alimony situation, and who are dealing with it for a friend or a loved one, may need some help in these trying times. Call the law firm of Kristopher K. Greenwood & Associates to discuss your situation and get answers today.