How can I get my ex-husband to assist me financially?

"I got my divorce sometime last year and since then, I have been struggling to make ends meet. My ex-husband used to take care of the household, however, since the divorce he stopped paying the bills in the house and my pay really cannot cover them. What can I do to have him assist me?" - Chin

Dear Chin:

I believe what you are enquiring about is spousal maintenance. I will, therefore, outline what spousal maintenance is, as well as the factors taken into account by the court.

What is spousal maintenance?

Spousal maintenance, formerly referred to as alimony, can be defined as financial support that a person is ordered by a court to give to their spouse during separation or following divorce.

Need versus capability

The court is empowered to entertain the application and to make orders for maintenance pursuant to the Matrimonial Causes Act, 1989 and the Maintenance Act 2005. Pursuant to Section 4 of the Maintenance Act, there is a mutual obligation on a spouse "so far as he or she is capable" and to the extent that maintenance is "necessary" to meet the "reasonable needs" in circumstances where the other spouse "cannot practicably meet the whole or any part of those needs". In your case, you may wish to make a claim for spousal maintenance.

Although the act states that there is an obligation to maintain the other spouse, you should know that any such case will rest on your inability to maintain yourself as well as your ex-husband's capability to maintain you to the extent that it is necessary to meet your reasonable needs.

Therefore, if the court is satisfied that you cannot practicably meet all or any part of your needs, and that your ex-husband can afford to pay such sum as may be necessary to meet the reasonable needs, then the court will move on to other considerations in determining what sum should be awarded as maintenance.

Factors considered by the court

When considering these type of applications, the court generally takes into account several factors which include: the capacity of the respondent to provide support; the respondent's and the dependant's assets and means; and the length of time of the marriage or cohabitation.

This would be information that you would know prior to making the application and as such, I would suggest that you provide your lawyer with as much information as possible so that he or she can flesh it out in your affidavit in support of your claim.

How long can one get support?

Just so you know, spousal maintenance is usually awarded for a defined period [term of years] or for the remainder of the parties' life [known as a 'joint lives order']. It is important for you to understand, however, that the said Maintenance Act, in particular Section 7, clearly states that "a person shall not be liable to maintain another person if the other person marries someone else or is cohabiting with someone else" and any prior maintenance order will cease to have effect if either of those events occurs.

You should be aware also that if there is a change in circumstances, for example, your income has increased significantly and you are no longer facing the same difficulties as at the time of the order, your ex-husband can apply to the court for the order to be varied or dismissed. The same is true if your ex-husband's circumstances have worsened.

Odane Marston is an attorney-at-law who specialises in conveyancing, administration, probate, recovery of possession, criminal litigation and divorce. Marston may be contacted via email: Odanemarston@gmail.com or telephone 876-999-5391. This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.