The #1 Thing Most People Don’t Realize About Spousal Support

What's one thing that a lot of people don't realize about alimony, or spousal support, in California? I'd say the number one thing is that a lot of people have a misconception that it goes forever — it's perpetual — or that it has some specific end date. Typically, in a long-duration marriage, there's no end date, because unless the parties agree to that, well, the court's not going to put an end date on it. But it doesn't mean that it lasts forever. It just means that it's permanent until it's modified or terminated. What could cause that? Some change in circumstance — like the person who pays support loses their job, or the person who receives support gets remarried or dies. Maybe the person who receives support was supposed to find work and they never did. Happens a lot, by the way. These are all situations that could cause a permanent spousal support order to be modified down, or to be terminated altogether.