What Does the North Carolina Alimony Statute Provide? Who
can get alimony?
First, in order for the court to award alimony, the court
must find one spouse is “dependent.” The statute provides: The court shall
award alimony to the dependent spouse upon a finding that one spouse is a
dependent spouse, that the other spouse is a supporting spouse, and that an
award of alimony is equitable after considering all relevant factors, including
those set out in subsection (b) of this section. To be “actually, substantially
dependent,” and thus entitled to alimony, a spouse must have an actual
dependence on the other in order to maintain the standard of living to which he
or she became accustomed during the last several years prior to the spouses’
separation. To be “substantially in need of support” means that the dependent
spouse would be unable to maintain his or her accustomed standard of living
established prior to separation without the financial contribution from the
other. Not willing to completely break with tradition, the statute also
provides that a dependent spouse who committed an “illicit sexual act” during
the marriage shall not receive alimony, and a supporting spouse who committed
an “illicit sexual act” during marriage shall pay alimony. (If both committed
such an act, then the discretion of the court determines whether a spouse shall
receive alimony; if such an act was condoned, it is though the act did not take
place.) Conventional notions of “guilt” survive. How long does alimony last?
The duration of the award may be for a specified or for an indefinite term.
What factors determine the duration and amount?
The statute lists sixteen factors for the court to consider:
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