How Is Spousal Support Calculated in Michigan? The 14 Factors Judges Use

You're considering getting a divorce and someone says, "Hey, what about spousal support?" And you're thinking, "Oh, am I going to have to pay spousal support? How long? How much?" Or maybe you're on the other side and you're saying, "Wow, am I going to get spousal support? How much am I going to need?" Either way, you may think, "Well, I'm going to go search for a formula, for a calculator that will tell me what to expect." But here's the truth that Michigan family law attorneys deal with everyday. There is no formula. Unlike child support which follows a strict calculation, spousal support is entirely a judgment call. The judge has to weigh 14 separate factors before deciding spousal support but it's within discretion of the court. By the end of this video, I'm going to at least share with you some of the more practical factors that courts really look at that come in to play in cases dealing with spousal support and things that you should be doing right now if you believe that support's going to be an issue in your case. I'm Jim Kraayeveld, founding attorney at Kraayeveld Family Law here in West Michigan. Yes, all of the major factors that I want to discuss come up in almost every case where spousal support gets asked about and becomes a reality in our cases. Even though we don't have a support formula in Michigan, there are 14 statutory factors that the judge has to look at under MCL 552.23. Of those, some of the bigger factors that dominate the issue is the length of marriage, earning capacity gap, contributions to the marriage, standard of living, and fault. Age probably is also a relevant factor. For example, a short-term marriage of a few years typically does not lead to spousal support and if so, it will be probably a very short period of spousal support. However, the longer the marriage, the more likely there will be spousal support. A 15, 20-year marriage, it's going to become quite likely that there will be some spousal support. The earning capacity gap, though, is also extremely relevant because if one party earns substantially more than the other party, that difference is going to have to be closed up. Contributions to the marriage is something that the court will look at. For example, if one of the parties went to college, was about to have a career, but decided to stay home, raise kids, and gave up that career and the earning ability, and 25, 30 years later, finds themselves in a position that, well, I'm all of a sudden separated, yes, spousal support is probably going to be relevant. The court will also look, though, at the standard of living. Fault, those are often an overlay. For example, a person has an affair, that may impact support, the term and the amount. If there's a gambling problem, a drug addiction, somehow a wasting of money, that can be factored in by the court system. So, what can you do about it right now? Document! Document your contributions. If you're the parent that brings the kids to school, does all things school-related, activities-related, so that the other party can earn money, well, document that. Document your income history. Social security reports typically show what each party earned over the years. You can get W-2s, tax returns, bank statements will show your standard of living. What are you spending money on? If you go to court and say, "Well, we went on vacation three times a year and we spend X amount. Have the proof, the verification for it. Those are all things that you can compile and share with your attorney because of course they're going to be able to tell you, based on your judge, your county, and potentially after discussion with you, what are the issues between the two parties that are getting divorced, what you can expect. So, if this is the kind of straight answer that you're looking for, what do the courts actually do? What are your real options? And what do things actually cost? We put out videos like this regularly, hit subscribe so you don't miss the next one! No fluff, no general advice. Just what do Michigan courts actually look at and what do West Michigan parents or people going through a divorce actually need to know? And if you're in the middle of this right now or you know that it's coming, the most useful thing you can do is have a conversation with someone who knows this terrain. You don't have to commit to anything, sign anything, but it would be handy to get a clear read on what your situation actually looks like from a legal standpoint. Know what your options are and know what it's going to cost. Our firm offers consultations. We respond to every inquiry within one business day. Reach out and we'd be glad to meet with you, have that conversation, get clear information. No pressure, just know your rights. It's what I'm inviting you to do. Until next time.