                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

COURT MAY DECREE AS TO MAINTENANCE AND SUPPORT OF SPOUSES (§ 20-107.1)

A. Pursuant to any proceeding arising under subsection L of &#xA7; 16.1-241 or
upon the entry of a decree providing (i) for the dissolution of a marriage, (ii)
for a divorce, whether from the bond of matrimony or from bed and board, (iii)
that neither party is entitled to a divorce, or (iv) for separate maintenance,
the court may make such further decree as it shall deem expedient concerning the
maintenance and support of the spouses, notwithstanding a party&#8217;s failure
to prove his grounds for divorce, provided that a claim for support has been
properly pled by the party seeking support. However, the court shall have no
authority to decree maintenance and support payable by the estate of a deceased
spouse.

B. Any maintenance and support shall be subject to the provisions of &#xA7;
20-109, and no permanent maintenance and support shall be awarded from a spouse
if there exists in such spouse&#8217;s favor a ground of divorce under the
provisions of subdivision A (1) of &#xA7; 20-91. However, the court may make
such an award notwithstanding the existence of such ground if the court
determines from clear and convincing evidence, that a denial of support and
maintenance would constitute a manifest injustice, based upon the respective
degrees of fault during the marriage and the relative economic circumstances of
the parties.

C. The court, in its discretion, may decree that maintenance and support of a
spouse be made in periodic payments for a defined duration, or in periodic
payments for an undefined duration, or in a lump sum award, or in any
combination thereof.

D. In addition to or in lieu of an award pursuant to subsection C, the court may
reserve the right of a party to receive support in the future. In any case in
which the right to support is so reserved, there shall be a rebuttable
presumption that the reservation will continue for a period equal to 50 percent
of the length of time between the date of the marriage and the date of
separation. Once granted, the duration of such a reservation shall not be
subject to modification. Unless otherwise provided by stipulation or contract
executed on or after July 1, 2020, or unless otherwise ordered by the court on
or after July 1, 2020, a party seeking to exercise his right to support so
reserved shall be required to prove a material change of circumstances as a
prerequisite for the court to consider exercise of such reservation.

E. The court, in determining whether to award support and maintenance for a
spouse, shall consider the circumstances and factors which contributed to the
dissolution of the marriage, specifically including adultery and any other
ground for divorce under the provisions of subdivision A (3) or (6) of § 20-91
or § 20-95. In determining the nature, amount and duration of an award pursuant
to this section, the court shall consider the following:

   1. The obligations, needs and financial resources of the parties, including
   but not limited to income from all pension, profit sharing or retirement
   plans, of whatever nature;

   2. The standard of living established during the marriage;

   3. The duration of the marriage;

   4. The age and physical and mental condition of the parties and any special
   circumstances of the family;

   5. The extent to which the age, physical or mental condition or special
   circumstances of any child of the parties would make it appropriate that a
   party not seek employment outside of the home;

   6. The contributions, monetary and nonmonetary, of each party to the
   well-being of the family;

   7. The property interests of the parties, both real and personal, tangible and
   intangible;

   8. The provisions made with regard to the marital property under &#xA7;
   20-107.3;

   9. The earning capacity, including the skills, education and training of the
   parties and the present employment opportunities for persons possessing such
   earning capacity;

   10. The opportunity for, ability of, and the time and costs involved for a
   party to acquire the appropriate education, training and employment to obtain
   the skills needed to enhance his earning ability;

   11. The decisions regarding employment, career, economics, education and
   parenting arrangements made by the parties during the marriage and their
   effect on present and future earning potential, including the length of time
   one or both of the parties have been absent from the job market;

   12. The extent to which either party has contributed to the attainment of
   education, training, career position or profession of the other party; and

   13. Such other factors, including the tax consequences to each party and the
   circumstances and factors that contributed to the dissolution, specifically
   including any ground for divorce, as are necessary to consider the equities
   between the parties.

F. In contested cases in the circuit courts, any order granting, reserving or
denying a request for spousal support shall be accompanied by written findings
and conclusions of the court identifying the factors in subsection E which
support the court&#8217;s order. Any order granting or reserving any request for
spousal support shall state whether the retirement of either party was
contemplated by the court and specifically considered by the court in making its
award, and, if so, the order shall state the facts the court contemplated and
specifically considered as to the retirement of the party. If the court awards
periodic support for a defined duration, such findings shall identify the basis
for the nature, amount and duration of the award and, if appropriate, a
specification of the events and circumstances reasonably contemplated by the
court which support the award.

G. For purposes of this section and &#xA7; 20-109, &#8220;date of
separation&#8221; means the earliest date at which the parties are physically
separated and at least one party intends such separation to be permanent
provided the separation is continuous thereafter and &#8220;defined
duration&#8221; means a period of time (i) with a specific beginning and ending
date or (ii) specified in relation to the occurrence or cessation of an event or
condition other than death or termination pursuant to &#xA7; 20-110.

H. Where there are no minor children whom the parties have a mutual duty to
support, an order directing the payment of spousal support, including those
orders confirming separation agreements, entered on or after October 1, 1985,
whether they are original orders or modifications of existing orders, shall
contain the following:

   1. If known, the name, date of birth, and social security number of each party
   and, unless otherwise ordered, each party&#8217;s residential and, if
   different, mailing address, residential and employer telephone number, and
   number appearing on a driver&#8217;s license or other document issued under
   Chapter 3 (&#xA7; 46.2-300 et seq.) of Title 46.2 or the comparable law of
   another jurisdiction, and the name and address of each party&#8217;s employer;
   however, when a protective order has been issued or the court otherwise finds
   reason to believe that a party is at risk of physical or emotional harm from
   the other party, information other than the name of the party at risk shall
   not be included in the order;

   2. The amount of periodic spousal support expressed in fixed sums, together
   with the payment interval, the date payments are due, and the date the first
   payment is due;

   3. A statement as to whether there is an order for health care coverage for a
   party;

   4. If support arrearages exist, (i) to whom an arrearage is owed and the
   amount of the arrearage, (ii) the period of time for which such arrearage is
   calculated, and (iii) a direction that all payments are to be credited to
   current spousal support obligations first, with any payment in excess of the
   current obligation applied to arrearages;

   5. If support overages exist, (i) to whom an overage is owed and the amount of
   the overage, (ii) the period of time for which such overage is calculated, and
   (iii) how such overage is to be paid;

   6. If spousal support payments are ordered to be paid directly to the obligee,
   and unless the court for good cause shown orders otherwise, the parties shall
   give each other and the court at least 30 days&#8217; written notice, in
   advance, of any change of address and any change of telephone number within 30
   days after the change; and

   7. Notice that in determination of a spousal support obligation, the support
   obligation as it becomes due and unpaid creates a judgment by operation of
   law.

HISTORY: 1982, c. 309; 1984, c. 456; 1988, c. 620; 1994, c. 518; 1998, c. 604;
2003, c. 625; 2016, cc. 477, 615; 2018, c. 583; 2020, cc. 196, 1227, 1246; 2024,
c. 51.