When couples divorce in Tennessee, one of the most important financial considerations is spousal support—commonly known as alimony. Tennessee law recognizes that divorce can create significant economic differences between spouses, particularly when one partner has sacrificed career opportunities to support the marriage or family. To address these situations, Tennessee courts have the authority to award several distinct types of alimony, each designed to serve different purposes.
Whether you're contemplating divorce, in the midst of a divorce, or simply want to understand your rights, knowing the four types of alimony available in Tennessee is essential. This guide will walk you through each type, explain when courts use them, and clarify the key factors that influence alimony decisions.
The Four Types of Alimony in Tennessee
Tennessee law recognizes four distinct types of spousal support: (1) rehabilitative alimony, (2) transitional alimony, (3) alimony in Futuro, and (4) alimony in Solido. Each serves a different purpose and comes with its own set of rules regarding duration, modifiability, and termination.
1. Rehabilitative Alimony: Supporting the Path to Self-Sufficiency
Rehabilitative alimony is Tennessee's preferred form of spousal support, reflecting the state's public policy goal of encouraging divorced spouses to become economically self-sufficient whenever possible.
What It Is
Rehabilitative alimony is short-term support designed to help an economically disadvantaged spouse achieve an earning capacity that will allow their standard of living after divorce to be reasonably comparable to what they enjoyed during the marriage-or to the standard of living the other spouse will have post-divorce. This type of alimony is particularly appropriate when one spouse needs time, education, or training to re-enter the workforce or upgrade their skills after years spent as a homemaker or in a lower-paying role to support the family unit.
The court retains control over rehabilitative alimony and can increase, decrease, terminate, extend, or modify it upon a showing of substantial and material change in circumstances. These can include remarrying, cohabitating with an adult, and an increase or decrease in one of the parties’ incomes, that no longer make the alimony appropriate without modification.
2. Transitional Alimony: Bridge-the-Gap Support
Transitional alimony is another form of relatively short-term alimony that may be awarded by the courts in Tennessee.
What It Is
Transitional alimony helps the disadvantaged spouse transition into single life. It's designed to help a spouse who already possesses the capacity to be self-sufficient but needs financial assistance to adjust to life without the other spouse's income. Unlike rehabilitative alimony, which is designed to increase the disadvantaged spouse's capacity for self-sufficiency (through education, training, or work experience), transitional alimony is designed to aid a spouse who already has that capacity, but needs help with the practical transition to single life.
Transitional alimony is harder to modify than rehabilitative alimony. It may be modified only if: (1) the parties agree it may be modified; (2) the court provides for modification in the court order; or (3) the recipient spouse resides with an adult following the entry of the order.
3. Alimony in Futuro: Long-Term Periodic Support
When rehabilitation isn't feasible and a spouse cannot achieve economic self-sufficiency, Tennessee courts may award alimony in Futuro, which is a form of long-term support.
What It Is
Alimony in Futuro is appropriate when the economically disadvantaged spouse cannot achieve self-sufficiency and economic rehabilitation is not feasible. Courts may award alimony in futuro where there is an economic disadvantage to one spouse and rehabilitation is not feasible. Alimony in Futuro typically lasts until the death or remarriage of the recipient. However, it can also be modified if there is a substantial and material changes in circumstances, such as the recipient residing with an adult, the recipient inheriting substantial money or a reduction in the paying party’s income.
3. Alimony in Solido: Lump Sum Support
Alimony in Solido-also called lump-sum alimony-is different from the other types because it represents a fixed amount rather than ongoing payments. .
What It Is
The total amount to be paid in Alimony in Solido is calculated at the time of the court order. A court can order it paid in a lump sum or over a set number of payments. Generally, alimony in Solido is designed to help equalized the division of property. For example, if there is an asset, such as a business, that is granted to one party and there are not sufficient other assets to grant to the other party, a court may award the other party a sum of money designed to equalized the assets. Because alimony in Solido is designed to equalize the division of assets, it is not modifiable once awarded. It does not end even if the spouse receiving it remarries. It ends only when the amount ordered to be paid is, in fact, paid.
The attorneys at Patton | Pittman have decades of experience navigating the issues created by the need for alimony. If you need a strong, competent attorney to address potential alimony issues in your divorce, contact our domestic team at Patton | Pittman.