Divorce causes disruption in the separated spouses’ daily lives and, oftentimes, their standard of living. For some couples, this financial disparity is significant enough to warrant spousal support.
In Florida, there are multiple types of alimony that are temporarily given during or following divorce proceedings.
Temporary alimony
This broad type of support may be appropriate in situations where one spouse needs temporary assistance during the divorce process to cover bills like mortgage payments or utility bills. Once the divorce is complete, a court may award a different type of alimony, but that is not guaranteed.
Bridge-the-gap alimony
Also a temporary type of support, bridge-the-gap differs from temporary alimony in that it occurs immediately following the finalization of a divorce. This financial support should serve to ease the monetary burden of transitioning from married to single life, which can be greater for a husband or wife who was financially dependent on their spouse.
Rehabilitative alimony
In situations where one spouse has been dependent on the financial support of the other for a significant period of time, thus leading to a lack of employment skills or experience, rehabilitative alimony may be appropriate. This requires the person receiving the payments to develop a plan for supporting themselves, which can include education, training or job hunting.
Alimony can have a limited period of time assigned to it; this is durational alimony. Lump-sum alimony is also a form of temporary support because it is usually received as a one-time payment, although it can also get distributed into installments.