The Supreme Court has laid down the guidelines for deciding the final alimony amount in a divorce case involving a Hindu couple.
On the facts of the case that the Supreme Court was hearing while laying out the guidelines, the husband) and wife remained married for six years and lived separately for nearly two decades. The husband claimed the wife was overly sensitive and distant from his family, while the wife alleged his mistreatment.
The Supreme Court laid out eight factors to be considered when deciding on alimony.
- Status of the parties, social and financial.
- Reasonable needs of the wife and the dependent children.
- Parties’ individual qualifications and employment statuses.
- Independent income or assets owned by the applicant.
- Standard of life enjoyed by the wife in the matrimonial home.
- Any employment sacrifices made for the family responsibilities.
- Reasonable litigation costs for a non-working wife.
- Financial capacity of the husband, his income, maintenance obligations, and liabilities.
The court advised all other courts to follow the guidelines to decide a permanent alimony amount but clarified it added that the aforementioned factors “do not lay down a strait jacket formula but act as a guideline while deciding permanent alimony."
The court observed that the permanent alimony amount should be decided in such a manner that does not penalise the husband but ensures a decent standard of living for the wife.