The overriding legislative intent in establishing alimony law is that the State of Florida does not want to support an impecunious spouse by way of welfare, food stamps, and the like. Therefore, courts will look to the breadwinning spouse to ensure that the other spouse does not go homeless or without basic living necessities.
What this has translated to by way of laws and judicial interpretation is that there are two spouses who enjoyed a certain standard of living throughout the marriage, and, upon dissolution of that marriage, both spouses should continue to enjoy that same standard of living.
To the extent that one spouse cannot afford that established standard of living with his or her own income, the other spouse must provide supplemental income. Of course, what usually occurs upon dissolution of marriage is that the standard of living enjoyed by two people in the same household will go down when there are two households to maintain.
In determining whether to award alimony in Florida, the court will first make a determination as to need and ability to pay and then the court shall consider all relevant factors, including, but not limited to:
• The standard of living established during the marriage;
• The duration of the marriage;
• The age and the physical and emotional condition of each party;
• The financial resources of each party, including the non-marital and marital assets and liabilities distributed to each;
• The earning capacities, educational levels, vocational skills, and employability of the parties;
• The contribution of each party to the marriage, including services rendered in homemaking, child care, education, and career building of the other party;
• The responsibilities each party will have with regard to any minor children they have in common;
• The tax treatment and consequences to both parties of any alimony award; and
• All sources of income available to either party.