If you have never before run across the word “manimony,” that is because it is a recently coined nickname for the spousal support payments that courts require some high-earning wives to pay to their former husbands after a divorce. While manimony only occurs in roughly 15% of today’s divorces, it nevertheless represents an idea whose time has definitely come.
Wife.org explains that the rise of manimony reflects the changing role of American women and the financial contributions they make to their families. For instance, as far back as 2013, women represented the major or sole breadwinner in 40% of American households. In addition, more American men, up to 2 million of them, choose to be the stay-at-home parent, content to let their wives bring home the bacon.
Manimony factors
Should your about-to-be ex-husband ask the court for a manimony award, it will consider such things as the following before granting it:
- The salary or wage each of you currently earns
- The amount of earning potential each of you possesses
- The level of education each of you attained
- Whether your husband could increase his earning potential if he obtained additional education or training
- The length of your marriage
- The extent to which your husband contributed to it in nonfinancial ways
Manimony payment period
As with all types of spousal support, you can expect to make manimony payments for a maximum of 10 years should the court grant it to your husband. Your payments likely will end sooner if he chooses to remarry prior to the expiration of the 10-year period. And if the court grants him manimony so he can go back to school, etc., your payments almost assuredly will end once he gets his required education or training.