Alimony, which is often referred to as spousal support, is money that one spouse provides to another during the divorce proceeding and, in some cases, for an additional period after the divorce is final. The intent is to allow the alimony recipient to maintain a standard of living that was established during the marriage until he or she can become self-sustaining.
Alimony is usually provided in scheduled payments (often monthly) or in a lump-sum payment, although that is less common. As with all other aspects of divorce, if the parties involved can agree to terms of alimony without litigating, the proposed agreement can be submitted for court approval. If the parties cannot reach agreement through negotiation, the court will set the amount and duration of alimony payments.