Alimony ,When a married pair makes the decision to go their separate ways and separate, the one who is economically weaker has the right to seek for some money to pay his or her living expenses from the other party.
The financial award may be referred to as alimony or maintenance depending on the context. When one partner in a marriage provides financial support to the other in the form of a regular stipend, this arrangement is known as maintenance. Alimony, on the other hand, is a one-time payment paid to the economically weaker person by the financially stronger side. This release of the financially stronger party from any additional financial commitments stemming from the marriage is the purpose of alimony.
Notwithstanding this, it is common practice to presume that the husband is the one who will be required to pay alimony or maintenance to the wife in the event of a divorce. On the other hand, there have been a few situations in which the wife was required to carry out the action. Because of this, a person’s gender does not preclude them from filing a petition for alimony or maintenance.
History of Alimony
In our society, the duty to provide care and financial assistance to a partner who is unable to provide for themselves is not a recent phenomenon. The Hebrews, the Egyptians, and the Greeks are credited with being the first people to demand alimony after a divorce. According to the Hammurabi Code, a Mesopotamian husband who abandoned his wife for no valid reason was compelled to hand over a silver coin as a kind of restitution.
A piece of gold was required to be forfeited by the spouse of the person found guilty of adultery under Roman law during the reign of Justinian I. According to the teachings of the church in England during the middle ages, divorce did not absolve either spouse of the responsibilities that came with marriage.
Because of this, the husband was required to provide a subsistence payment for his wife. The concept of alimony quickly spread to other parts of the world, most notably India, where a number of prominent Hindu jurists, such as Yajnavalkya and Manu, steadfastly supported a husband’s obligation to support his wife regardless of any disagreements that may exist between the couple. Alimony is also known as maintenance, maintenance payments, and spousal support.
Alimony laws that a party must comply with in order to make a claim.
The Indian Divorce Act of 1869, Sections 36 to 38, Section 37 of the Special Marriage Act of 1954, the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955, and Section 25 of the Hindu Marriage Act
Several Forms of Alimony
Alimony that is just temporary and paid on a month-to-month basis is called “temporary alimony.” This type of alimony is awarded while a divorce or judicial separation petition is being processed. In the case of temporary alimony, payments are made for a predetermined period of time.
Permanent alimony is awarded once the divorce or legal separation has been completed and the final paperwork has been signed. The duration of the alimony that was granted in this case is not specified; nonetheless, it will end either when the party who is receiving it passes away or when they marry again.
Alimony that is considered to be rehabilitative is only awarded in situations when the lower-earning spouse is actively seeking employment or other sources of income in order to meet their financial obligations. This is a short-term agreement meant to assist the partner who does not contribute financially in acquiring new skills or finding stable job for themselves.
The term “reimbursement” refers to the payment that is provided to the spouse who incurred particular costs, such as those related to their schooling or those that boosted the other spouse’s income. This type of alimony is known as “reimbursement alimony.”
While determining alimony, the following considerations are taken into account:
The parties’ respective financial situations
While deciding the amount of alimony to be paid, it is necessary to take into account the economic circumstances of both individuals who were involved in the marriage. It is imperative that, before to entering into a marriage, both parties have a thorough understanding of their respective financial situations. After this has been proven, the court will need to decide whether or not to grant alimony to the party that is requesting it, as well as whether or not the nature of the alimony should be permanent or simply temporary.
The parties’ vibrant social lives
The manner in which the parties have been living their lives up until the beginning of the proceedings is another important aspect that needs to be taken into consideration. It is essential to keep in mind that any alimony that is granted must be suitable for the way of life of the one who is requesting the assistance.
The actions taken by both parties
The actions of the parties during the marriage are one of the primary considerations that go into establishing the amount of alimony that will be awarded. Throughout the process of establishing alimony, it is imperative that either party’s past history of unkind behaviour or infidelity be taken into consideration.
The length of the marriage
If the parties have not been married for a very long time, then the alimony that is awarded to them will most likely be temporary since it is believed that the parties are still young and have the ability to make money and support themselves without the assistance of the other party.
The alimony, on the other hand, is typically permanent if the couple was married for a lengthy period of time, and the paying party is required to support the incapacitated spouse until the receiving party dies or remarries. If the couple was married for a short period of time, the alimony may be temporary. To put it another way, even after the paying party has passed away, the responsibility to continue making alimony payments is still in existence. In a scenario like this one, the alimony obligation is met from the estate that is left behind.
The child’s care and custody
The party that has custody of the child is regarded as having higher responsibility because they are responsible for paying all of the expenditures associated with child care. In this scenario, the court is required to give careful consideration to the amount of alimony awarded in order to guarantee that both the kid and the person who is responsible for the child’s upbringing receive adequate financial support.
The conditions of the participants’ health
If one of the parties to the marriage is suffering from a physical or mental illness and is asking for alimony, the other party has a moral obligation to pay for those expenditures or reimburse them if the person suffering from the illness is unable to do so owing to their failing condition.
The ages of the Contestants
When calculating the amount of alimony to be paid, age is a significant element. If the party who is seeking alimony has reached an age at which it is extremely difficult for them to acquire a job or if they are physically unable to do so, the court may decide to give the party who is being wronged with a permanent alimony payment. Nonetheless, a provisional award will be issued if the party requesting alimony is young and able to support themselves, even though the other considerations will still be taken into account.
It was said in U. Sree v. U. Srinivas 2012 (12) JT 358 by the Honorable Supreme Court of India that there is no mathematical formula that must be remembered for determining alimony because numerous factors are taken into consideration. Nonetheless, it is the role of the court to ensure that the wife lives a life that is at least comfortable, if not luxurious.
Bandana Kayal Alias Singh v. Arun Kumar Singh (1989) 1 Cal LJ 503 is the case in which the Honorable Calcutta High Court made the decision that the husband would be required to pay alimony to his wife if he was employed at the time that the lawsuit was filed. This decision was made in the context of the case Bandana Kayal Alias Singh v. Arun Kumar Singh. Alimony can still be requested by the wife even if the husband resigned from his job either before or immediately after the petition was submitted to the court.
In the case of Reema Salkan v. Sumer Singh Salkan (2019) 12 SCC 303, a similar line of reasoning was used. In that case, the Honourable Delhi High Court stated that if the husband has educational credentials and is physically abled, his moral obligation to support his wife does not get excused simply because he is not working at the time. This was stated in response to the argument that the husband’s moral obligation to support his wife does not get excused simply because
In the case of Mayurakshi Basu v. Sandeep Basu (2013) 1 ICC 391, the Honorable Calcutta High Court came to the conclusion that the amount of alimony that should be paid to the wife should be equivalent to at least one-third of her husband’s total wealth.
In the case of Manish Jain v. Akanksha Jain (2017) 15 SCC 801, the Honorable Delhi High Court came to the conclusion that the circumstances of the wife’s parents’ finances should not be taken into account while deciding the amount of alimony or maintenance that should be paid.
Conclusion
The goal of alimony was to provide financial help to the spouse who was financially disadvantaged so that they could live a life that was pleasant and respectable despite their financial situation. Yet, in my view, the provision of alimony is subject to a great deal of misuse in contemporary culture. It is no longer a requirement in the same sense that it is a way of life.
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Alimony is often sought by couples not to support themselves financially but rather to cause the aggravation of the other spouse. It is quite unfortunate that the parties behaved in such an unprofessional manner. The reason alimony was established in the first place has been reinterpreted to signify something very different than its original purpose. In order to properly handle cases of this nature, our legal system needs to develop an in-depth evaluation approach.
