Simplistically put, it is a court-ordered obligation imposed on a spouse in a superior financial position to pay support to the other spouse, if he or she is unable to support himself or herself, in order to enable him or her to maintain a lifestyle akin to what was enjoyed during the marriage.

Maintenance is not ordered in every case, and in fact, the court has considerable discretion in determining whether or not to award maintenance, and if maintenance is awarded, considerable discretion to decide whether to apply the new statutory maintenance guidelines, and if not, to decide how much will be ordered, and for how many months or years the obligation will continue following the divorce.

The legal team at Grund & Leavitt has vast experience working with clients in varying financial situations, including those seeking maintenance and those defending maintenance claims, which allows us to make solid, well-articulated arguments regarding maintenance on behalf of any client, and to anticipate the arguments that are likely to be made by the other side.