States across the country have been reforming alimony laws in what supporters say is an attempt to modernize the rules and ensure fairness for both spouses. Florida is now part of this trend, with legislation pending in both the Florida House and Senate. The divorce law reform measure has been the subject of heated debate. Recently, the debate led the Senate bill's sponsors to modify its version, which allows divorced individuals to retroactively adjust alimony payments to ex-spouses.

The original bill listed strict guidelines, which served to reduce both the length of time and amount of spousal support paid after Florida divorces. It also would have prevented adultery from being considered in the determination of alimony payments. Additionally, the original bill would have made it more likely that spousal support could end when the receiving spouse was in another serious relationship, or the paying spouse retired.

Critics of the bill argued it unfairly allowed spouses to get out of their obligation to pay alimony. The watered down version of the Senate bill now allows for more flexibility based on judges' discretion. It now permits "long term" alimony to be awarded without it being permanent. It also allows for retirement to be considered if a petition is filed to modify or terminate alimony. Infidelity of a spouse may also be taken into account if it causes a "significant depletion" of assets or income.

The version of the bill in the House also prevents judges from factoring in the assets or salary of a new spouse when calculating alimony payments.

With debate continuing, it seems unlikely that a new law will be in place anytime soon. Anitere Flores (R-Miami) stated that although the bill remains a "work in progress," agreements are being reached.

Source: Orlando Sentinel, "Senate committee waters down divorce-law rewrite," Kathleen Haughney, Feb. 9, 2012