A durational alimony case was recently decided by the Florida Court of Appeal in a case captioned Rhoden v. Rhoden. In this case the husband filed a Petition for Dissolution of a thirty-five year marriage. The husband denied that wife required alimony, and denied that he was able to pay it. The Court stated that the wife had several illnesses, and probably would not have been employable if she had not worked for her husband. The Florida Statutes enable trial courts to award several different types of alimony. In awarding alimony, a court must first find that one party has a need for support and that the other party has the ability to pay. Once the court makes this initial determination, the Court is required to consider other factors set forth in the Florida Statutes. In this case, the trial court awarded the wife durational alimony.
