Maintenance, which you may know as spousal support or alimony, is governed by Wisconsin Statute 767.56. Though maintenance awards are determined by a number of statutory factors, judges have quite a lot of discretion in determining whether to award maintenance at all, and if so, how much. The first factor is the length of marriage. The longer the marriage is, the more likely that maintenance is warranted. Generally, a marriage that only lasts a couple, or even 5 years, is not long enough for maintenance. 

The next factor is the age and health of the parties. If both parties are of similar (working) age and both healthy the expectation is that they can continue to work. If one party has health issues that make work challenging, they may be in need of more support. 

The Court will also consider the division of property. Perhaps property was already divided unequally to compensate one party such that maintenance is no longer necessary. Or perhaps the party seeking maintenance received less in property division and therefore has an even greater interest in maintenance. Point being, the Judge will consider who got what when deciding whether to award maintenance, and how much.

There are several factors that relate to the party’s education level and ability to work/ earn at a certain level. The Court will want to know, did one party sacrifice their career to raise children? Did one party maintain the household while the other obtained a degree? Is one party’s earning capacity 10 times as great as the other? Sacrifices during the marriage and disparities in income or earning capacity will impact whether/ how much maintenance is appropriate. Generally, sacrifices made for your spouse’s success, or an inability to earn like your spouse, will weigh in favor of a maintenance award.  

The above is not an exhaustive list of the Court’s considerations, and Wisconsin Statute 767.56(j) allows the Court to consider “such other factors as the court may in each individual case determine to be relevant”, which again, gives the Judge a lot of latitude when it comes to deciding maintenance. Because there are so many factors, only some of which were mentioned here, and the Judge has wide discretion, maintenance awards can be difficult to predict. If you are seeking maintenance, or would like to guard against paying it, speak with an attorney about your specific circumstances and they can help you weigh the factors and make a plan for your case.