Typical Divorce Settlement Terms in Alabama

Approximately 20,000 divorces are filed in Alabama each year, according to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a recent National Vital Statistics Report. Parties going through the divorce process must come to agreement as to how to settle issues such as property divisions, child custody and support and alimony. If the husband and wife cannot resolve these matters, a judge will make the decision for them. It’s important to have an understanding of what key Alabama divorce settlement terms mean.

Equitable Distribution

This describes how marital property and debts are divided between the parties. Property and debt acquired during the marriage are divided fairly but not necessarily equally. There is no one, fixed standard as to how debt and property should be split up, and the facts of each individual case determine what is fair.

Joint Custody

Custody concerns how the parties will specifically parent the children, both legally and physically. Alabama prefers a joint custody arrangement, and Alabama Code 30-30-150 through 30-2-157 details the prevailing law. Joint custody indicates that the parents will have joint legal and joint physical custody of the children and will share equal responsibilities regarding all matters, big and small.

Joint Physical Custody

This term can be confusing, as it does not mean that the child spends exactly the same amount of time with each parent. It means that the child spends substantial time with each parent, determined by the schedules of both parents and the child.

Sole Legal Custody

In this arrangement, one party makes all the major decisions as recognized by Alabama law for the minor child. The other parent is allowed input, but the final choice rests with the parent who has sole legal custody.

Sole Physical Custody

This arrangement is when the child lives with one party primarily and exclusively. The other party can still have visitation as agreed by the parents or the courts.

Parenting Plan

This detailed document is prepared and filed by the parties and outlines their divorce settlement agreement concerning all issues pertaining to the children. Alabama courts require specificity in this plan. It must discuss child support, child custody, child visitation to include holidays and vacations as well as medical care and other provisions that are important to the parents.

Child Support

This is the amount that one spouse pays to the other for the support of the minor child. Alabama laws have specific child support formulas that take into account each party’s income, the age of the children and the custody arrangement as well as various other expenditures both parties may be making on behalf of the children. Divorcing couples must stay within these guidelines.

Gross Alimony

Also called spousal support, gross alimony usually refers to a lump sum payment that compensates one spouse with a distributive share of the marital wealth. It is marked by these four aspects: non-taxable, can be discharged in a bankruptcy, fixed, and determined without considering any of the estate held by the party receiving the alimony.

Periodic Alimony

Spousal support that is paid on a regular schedule, usually monthly, is called periodic alimony. It differs from gross alimony in that it cannot be discharged in a bankruptcy, it usually counts as a tax event for both parties, it can cease and it always takes the receiving party’s estate into consideration.

References

• National Vital Statistic Report: Vol. 57, No.19
• Code of Alabama: Title 30

Resources

• DivorceInfo.com