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Terminating Alimony Alimony automatically terminates upon the remarriage or death of the recipient unless the decree of divorce says otherwise. (There are exceptions for if the remarriage of the alimony recipient is annulled.)

Unlike child support in Utah, there is no formula for judges to use to calculate alimony in a divorce.

Under Utah alimony laws, there are a few reasons why alimony might not be awarded. These include that the marriage was only for a short period of time, the income of the spouses is equal, the paying spouse doesn't have the money to pay alimony, or that the judge feels there isn't any need for alimony.

So, the takeaway here is that the court has the discretion to determine what a short-term marriage is and whether to grant alimony, but the cut-off is somewhere around 5-8 years or so. Our experience is that a spouse in a marriage lasting less than five years will not typically be granted alimony at trial.

The easiest way to get out of paying alimony is to have a frank discussion with your spouse about your situation. You may be able to reach an agreement between yourselves (even if it requires a little negotiating). You can also show the court that your spouse is perfectly capable of supporting him- or herself.

If the court determines that the dependent spouse will not be able to return to work and will need support continuously after a long marriage (usually at least 10 years), permanent support may be given. In Utah, the law mandates that the judge may order alimony only up to the number of years that the marriage lasted.