Spousal Maintenance in Arizona

Someone may choose to quit a good job because their spouse got a promotion in a new city. A couple may decide one of them should stay home to raise the children. Someone else may forego pursuing a degree to support their spouse as they earn theirs. These are all choices that make sense as long as the couple stays together.

Then comes the divorce. And suddenly, one spouse is faced with a reality they had not prepared for—providing for themselves on their own. It can be challenging to transition back to the workforce and in some cases, it may not even be possible. That’s where spousal maintenance may come in. On the other side, being forced to pay spousal maintenance can feel unfair. Not only are they getting divorced, but now they must pay their spouse, even though their spouse is already getting a lot of the benefits and financial assets based on the overall division of property.

Arizona has tried to balance these two positions through creating a spousal maintenance system that allows dependent spouses to transition to their independence.