Everything You Need to Know About California Spousal Support

If you’re getting divorce, expect spousal support to come up- even if you don’t consider yourself rich. It’s imperative both parties understand the ins and outs of the support orders as it often intensifies already sensitive family issues.

“Spousal support is easily one of the most heated issues in a divorce,” divorce attorney David Wilkinson writes.

So before there’s an explosion in California’s family courts, we asked the Corona spousal support attorneys at Wilkinson & Finkbeiner to answer some FAQs on how judges treat and award spousal support. Founded by two Certified Specialists in Family Law, David Wilkinson and Scott Finkbeiner, the family law firm has decades of experience handling divorces, spousal and child support matters.

Is there a difference between alimony, spousal support and maintenance?

No, they’re all synonymous. In California, family courts say spousal support.

What is the standard of living for spousal support?

Generally, family courts classify standard of living by classes: lower, middle, upper middle and upper class. These terms, however, have no legal meaning and therefore aren’t enough to justify a set amount of spousal support. Judges will look at a multitude of factors from how many vacations couples went on together to monthly net spendable income, real estate assets, and saving/retirement accounts. Be sure to inform your attorney of any assets or debt the other party could use to determine a standard of living.

What is temporary spousal support and how is it calculated?

Temporary spousal support simply means the awarded monetary funds will only last for a predetermined amount of time. For example, temporary spousal support may be granted for divorce proceedings and will terminate once finalized. Other possibilities for temporary support could be while one spouse returns to school, until a currently unemployed spouse finds a job, etc. But how is it calculated, and is it done differently than permanently spousal support?

Riverside County family courts have two options when determining temporary spousal support. One, is to use one of two computer programs- XSpouse or Dissomaster- that analyzes each party’s incomes, certain deductions and tax consequences before spitting out an amount. However, judges do not have to use the computer programs or follow their recommendations if they do use them. Either way, the courts must carefully consider the payee’s ability to pay and the receiver's true need; generally, temporary spousal support in California is about 35 percent of the net spendable income of the paying spouse, unless child support is also being paid.

Interestingly, California only allows the courts to use the programs to see tax potential consequences when determining permanent spousal support; they can’t use them to calculate the legal amount. Permanent spousal support is typically up to 20 percent of the temporary spousal support order.

What are the tax implications for spousal support?

Helping the payor, spousal support in California is taxable to the recipient and tax-deductible to the payor. That is, however, assuming the following requirements are met: valid court order requiring spousal support, payment must be in case or an equivalent payment, payment can’t be part of property division and parties can’t share a household.

What if I have a fluctuating income?

Not having a stable income will not disqualify someone from owing spousal support; there are many options, actually, to determining an appropriate amount of spousal support in this scenario. Riverside family courts may: average monthly income, use the prior year’s total income or order a Smith-Ostler (see below). If it’s difficult to obtain accurate income information, if a spouse is self-employed, etc. family attorneys can begin discovery, a legal process by which one party can obtain valuable information from the other for divorcing purposes. For more detailed information on fluctuating income, read Wilkinson & Finkbeiner’s free resource: How to Determine Income.

Wait, what is a “Smith-Ostler” order?

Applying to spousal and child support, a Smith-Ostler order designates how much, if any, of a bonus, commission or any other fluctuating income should be payed to the support recipient. The percentage is determined on a case-by-cases basis, but computer programs can help determine a reasonable amount.