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Amount & Duration of Maintenance

Quick Facts

Maintenance can last for as long as the court determines one spouse has a need for it.
Court will consider ability of each spouse to pay maintenance.
None of the factors is individually conclusive; the factors are given weight according to importance in each divorce case.

The maintenance order in divorce in Minnesota will be in amounts and for periods of time, either permanent or temporary maintenance, as the court deems just, without regard to marital misconduct, and after considering all relevant factors, including the following:

the financial resources of the spouse seeking maintenance, including marital property allocated to the spouse, and the spouse's ability to meet needs independently, including the extent to which a provision for support of a child living with the party includes a sum for that party as custodian;
the time necessary to obtain adequate education or training to allow the spouse seeking maintenance to find suitable employment, and the probability, given the spouse's age and skills, of completing education or training and becoming fully or partially self-supporting;
the standard of living established during the marriage;
the duration of the marriage and, in the case of a homemaker, the length of absence from employment and the extent to which any education, skills, or experience have become outdated and earning capacity has become permanently diminished;
the loss of earnings, seniority, retirement benefits, and other employment opportunities forgone by the spouse seeking spousal maintenance;
the age, and the physical and emotional condition of the spouse seeking maintenance;
the ability of the spouse from whom maintenance is sought to meet needs while meeting those of the spouse seeking maintenance;
the contribution of each party in acquisition, preservation, depreciation, or appreciation in the amount or value of the marital property, as well as the contribution of a spouse as a homemaker or in furtherance of the other party's employment or business.

Because life is unpredictable, modifications to spousal maintenance are possible under certain circumstances, such as significant changes in the needs and incomes of each spouse. An obligated spouse should not change the amount of maintenance he or she pays until the change is approved by the court.