When seeking a separation, divorce or a termination of a domestic partnership in DC, the court can award alimony to either party. The court can award the alimony for either an indefinite or limited period of time. Pendente Lite (temporary alimony) may be ordered by the court while the case is ongoing to help the requesting spouse. The award can also be retroactive to the time of the filing of the petition requesting the award. If your ex is behind on alimony payments, you have the option to file a Motion for Contempt so that the court can enforce the original order. If there has been a change in financial circumstances, the court can be asked to modify the order. The factors the court considers in making the award include, but are not limited to, the:
(1) ability of the party seeking alimony to be wholly or partly self-supporting;
(2) time necessary for the party seeking alimony to gain sufficient education or training to enable that party to secure suitable employment;
(3) standard of living that the parties established during their marriage or domestic partnership, but giving consideration to the fact that there will be 2 households to maintain;
(4) duration of the marriage or domestic partnership;
(5) circumstances which contributed to the estrangement of the parties;
(6) age of each party;
(7) physical and mental condition of each party;
(8) ability of the party from whom alimony is sought to meet his or her needs while meeting the needs of the other party; and
(9) financial needs and financial resources of each party.
