Bridge-the-Gap Alimony: An Emerging Vehicle for Satisfying Short-Term Need

Bridge-the-gap alimony is a tool used by lawyers in Florida to help their clients with short-term financial needs after a divorce. It was first mentioned in a court case in 1979, where a husband was ordered to pay his wife alimony for a short period to help her transition to being single. Another court case in 1987 upheld a similar alimony award for a wife who needed help transitioning to being single. Overall, bridge-the-gap alimony is used to help people in short-term marriages with their immediate financial needs after a divorce. In 1990, the First District Court of Appeal approved bridge-the-gap as a type of alimony in Shea v Shea. The court awarded the former marital home to the wife as lump sum rehabilitative alimony. The husband didn’t like this and said the wife didn’t have a specific plan for her rehabilitation. But the court said it’s okay to give alimony to help someone transition from being married to being single. The court didn’t say how old the wife was or how much money they made.

But the next year, the Fifth District Court of Appeal disagreed in Martin v. Martin. The wife was given $450 per month as alimony until their child started school. The wife said she needed the money to “weather the storm and bridge the gap.” But the court said that’s not a good enough reason for alimony. They said alimony has to be for permanent support, reaching a certain goal, or for sharing things fairly after a divorce.

So, if you’re in the Fifth District, just saying you need help isn’t enough to get alimony. You have to show the court exactly why you need it and how you plan to get back on your feet in the short term. The court approved a lump sum alimony award for a short-term marriage, where the wife needed financial help as a single mother. The court explained that lump sum alimony is a way to give either temporary or permanent alimony in one payment or in installments. It used to be used for dividing marital assets, but now that’s handled by a different law. The Borchard court says that lump sum alimony can be used to help a spouse transition from being married to being single. This could include things like buying furniture, getting a car, moving expenses, and paying for an apartment or utilities. But some questions come up, like why a specific plan is needed for temporary alimony but not for permanent alimony. Also, should someone with a college degree from a short marriage get permanent alimony? And why should a permanent alimony award never be changed? It’s unclear right now, so lawyers need to pay attention to their district’s rules when asking for short-term support. The Florida Bar wants its members to understand their duty to help the public and make the justice system better. They also want to improve the study of law.

Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/bridge-the-gap-alimony-an-emerging-vehicle-for-satisfying-short-term-need/