Can Alimony Be Modified Or Terminated In Colorado?
When alimony (also called spousal maintenance or spousal support) is awarded to one spouse during or after a divorce it is intended to provide financial support until the receiving spouse can become financially independent.
Maintenance payments may continue for a specific length of time or until a specific event takes place. In some cases, they can last for the life of the recipient.
Whether an order for alimony can be modified or terminated depends on whether the divorcing spouses agreed to a non-modifiable maintenance order and if qualifying circumstances are met.
When a Maintenance Order Can Be Modified
If the original maintenance order was imposed by the court, the court may consider a petition to modify or terminate the order. Maintenance payments can be modified or terminated upon a
“showing of changed circumstances so substantial and continuing as to make the terms unfair”.
In establishing the initial maintenance award, the court took into consideration the income of each party, the property each owned, other financial resources, and financial needs. Substantial changes in any of these areas – especially income – can be grounds for modifying maintenance payments.
Circumstances that may warrant modifying a maintenance order can include:
- Maintenance recipient’s financial needs decrease – receives an inheritance, moves in with someone else
- Health issues affecting either recipient or payor
- Increased needs of dependents
- Payor’s income or assets increase or decrease
- Cost of living changes
Non-Modifiable Maintenance Orders
When divorcing spouses agree on the amount and duration of maintenance payments, it becomes a contract between them and a court does not have jurisdiction to alter the terms no matter how significantly the circumstances may have changed.
Non-modifiable maintenance agreements can have certain advantages. For the payor, it means stability of payments even as wealth may increase. For the payee, it means a stream of income that lenders and other creditors view as reliable. For both parties it assures predictability.
The downside to non-modifiable alimony is that the payment amounts and duration cannot adapt to changing circumstances. If the payor falls on hard times, the alimony payments continue to be owed. If the payee becomes ill and is unable to work, there is no way to increase the maintenance payments.
How an Alimony Order May be Terminated
Maintenance orders typically terminate when the term of payment has been completed or if ordered by the court. They also automatically terminate upon the remarriage of the receiving spouse or the death of either spouse.
Upon reviewing a petition alleging a substantial and continuing change in circumstances, a court may decide that continued alimony payments are no longer fair to both parties and terminate the maintenance order.
Where to Get Help Modifying or Terminating Alimony Payments
Whether you are now paying too much or receiving too little, if the circumstances have changed so that the original maintenance order payment amount or duration is no longer fair, you may be able to petition the court to make some changes.
A Broomfield spousal support lawyer can review your maintenance order, address your concerns, and advise whether alimony modification or termination is warranted due to changed circumstances.