Divorce and Lump Sum Alimony

Divorce and lump sum alimony is the discussion for this blog. A client walked into my Brentwood, TN office today and indicated she wanted lump sum alimony. In this scenario, the wife is requesting she receive her alimony payments all at once at the time of the divorce rather than each month for a number of years. While lump sum alimony is beneficial for her, it has distinct disadvantages for her husband. I explained these disadvantages to the wife. She told me she did not think it was important for her settlement to benefit her husband. It was her settlement offer and she felt it should benefit her only.

It is important that each spouse consider the needs of the other when negotiating a settlement. The settlement should be fair to both. Otherwise, one spouse will likely feel cheated, the case won't settle and tempers flare. This typically results in higher professional fees and more stress for the spouses and children. If you are going to be co-parenting, keeping the divorce process civil and efficient is imperative. A good settlement should be a win–win solution where both spouses get the things that are most important to them.