Spousal Support Request is Time Sensitive: Use it or Lose It

In other blogs and articles I've posted, I've covered the basics of California Family Law as it relates to the standards required to request either temporary or post judgment spousal support. As a quick refresher on this topic, if one spouses financial situation requires spousal support, the request for the financial help is typically initiated at the time a petition for divorce or legal separation is first filed with the court.

Spousal Support modifications after a judgment for divorce or legal separation is entered is commonly known as 'post judgment support'. The support amount is determined by 5 key factors: the length of the marriage, age of the parties, health history, employment, and standard of living during the course of the marriage. There is no hard or fast way the courts reach a determination on the amount a supported spouse should be paid since these 5 factors mean different things in each set of facts the court must consider when reviewing the financial relationship of husband and wife.

One thing that is certain is if you think you need support, you should ask for support or be faced with the possibility of being denied the financial help because too much time has passed.

The most recent example of how a denial of spousal support can play out can be found in the California family law case In re Marriage of Kacik (11/19/09) 4 Civ GO41274. In this case, the California Appellate Court held that a supported spouse must file a request for spousal support modification within a reasonable period of time.

The Kacik case involved a spouse delaying her request to modify spousal support for more than 17 months after her oldest child turned 18. At the time the child support dropped off, the supported spouse was recieving only her old spousal support payments. The court made it clear in its decision that the request to review spousal support need not be filed before the child support terminates. The big issue for the court was that the supported spouse waited as long as 17 months before instituting her request. One small bright spot in the decision was the courts recognition that the supported spouse was not precluded from filing a new motion for support based on other changed circumstances justifying a return to court.

To avoid this pitfall, its best to file a motion for support help as soon as you find yourself in a situation that would justify a return to court. The best way to assess if the time is right to return to court would be to consult with an attorney skilled in handling family law and support cases.