(The Center Square) — The Arizona Supreme Court adopted first-of-its-kind guidelines on spousal support for couples divorced on July 10 and afterward.
As there were no guidelines before, decisions over alimony were largely subjective and could vary greatly by each individual judge and county. Now, the guidelines determine that spousal support is intended “only for a period needed to achieve self-sufficiency.”
“The newly introduced guidelines and calculator will help determine spousal maintenance in Arizona,” Dave Byers, Director of the Supreme Court’s Administrative Office of the Courts, said in a news release. “To ensure the new guidelines are working as intended, we plan to collect data and survey parties after their implementation and make appropriate adjustments if needed.”
In addition, the court has developed a calculator it will use to decide what the appropriate amount of alimony will be in each case. According to the news release, the establishment of guidelines came from the Arizona Legislature in September 2022 amended a revised statute on alimony.
“Currently if you gave 10 different judges the same set of facts, you would likely get 10 different awards,” Paul McMurdie, chairman of the Spousal Maintenance Guidelines Subcommittee said in the release.
Alimony is typically intended as a basis of financial support for a spouse that had a lower personal income or no income at all, which is common in settings where a parent or spouse stayed at home.
