Understanding Spousal Maintenance in High-Asset Divorces

When high-net-worth marriages end, the financial aftermath can be just as complex as the emotional fallout. Many parties faced with divorce wonder if one spouse will be required to financially support the other, and if so, for how long and for how much. Understanding spousal maintenance in high-asset divorces is critical because the answer is rarely straightforward. While Texas law imposes limits on post-divorce support, wealthy couples often face unique challenges due to income disparities, lifestyle expectations, and nontraditional compensation structures. Whether you are the higher-earning spouse seeking to protect your wealth or the lower-earning spouse looking to maintain financial stability after years of shared success, understanding spousal maintenance in high-asset divorces is essential to safeguarding your future. At McClure Law Group, our experienced Dallas divorce attorneys can evaluate your circumstances and offer you strategic advice designed to help you seek the best legal outcome possible in your case. 

Texas law imposes strict limitations on when and how spousal maintenance may be awarded. Unlike some other states, spousal maintenance in Texas is not automatically granted, regardless of the wealth or income of the spouses. Instead, a spouse seeking maintenance must demonstrate not only financial need but also meet one of several conditions set forth in the Texas Family Code. These include situations where the obligor spouse was found guilty of a crime of family violence within two years of the divorce filing or where the receiving spouse is unable to meet their minimum reasonable needs due to a physical or mental disability or caretaking responsibilities for a disabled child. Spousal maintenance is also available in cases where the marriage lasted at least ten years and left the spouse without the ability to earn sufficient income to provide for their reasonable needs. 

In high-asset divorces, the challenge is often not whether the marital estate contains sufficient assets to support a maintenance award but whether the requesting spouse meets the legal threshold for eligibility. Courts look closely at whether the spouse truly lacks sufficient property, including their share of the marital estate, to meet basic living expenses. A high-asset divorce may involve millions in community property, and the court will scrutinize whether that property alone is enough to meet the spouse’s post-divorce needs without ongoing support. Understanding spousal maintenance in high-asset divorces requires a detailed review of asset division, earning potential, lifestyle during the marriage, and any prenuptial or postnuptial agreements that may limit or eliminate maintenance obligations.

Once eligibility is established, courts must consider a wide range of factors in determining the amount and duration of any spousal maintenance award. These factors include the length of the marriage, each spouse’s education and employment history, the age and health of both parties and the financial resources available to each spouse after property division. Courts may also examine whether either spouse engaged in marital misconduct, such as infidelity or financial fraud, although misconduct is not a required element for awarding or denying maintenance.

In high-asset divorces, one spouse may have been out of the workforce for years or may lack the training to secure meaningful employment. At the same time, the other spouse may be a business owner, professional, or executive with significant earning power. Courts aim to strike a balance between providing temporary support and encouraging self-sufficiency. Generally, maintenance awards are limited in duration, with a statutory maximum of five, seven, or ten years, depending on the length of the marriage and other factors. In rare cases involving disability or caretaking of a disabled child, indefinite maintenance may be awarded.

Texas law also caps the amount of monthly maintenance that can be awarded. This cap applies regardless of the total wealth involved. As a result, understanding spousal maintenance in high-asset divorces requires careful attention to alternative arrangements such as contractual alimony, which is agreed upon privately and is not subject to the same statutory caps or eligibility requirements. These agreements may offer more flexibility and predictability and are often used as part of a comprehensive settlement in high-net-worth divorces.

Understanding spousal maintenance in high-asset divorces requires more than a general familiarity with Texas family law. Whether you are concerned about paying an unjustified level of maintenance or you are seeking support to maintain stability after the end of a long-term marriage, you need experienced legal counsel who can navigate both the law and the financial realities of your case. At McClure Law Group, our experienced Dallas divorce attorneys regularly represent parties in high-asset divorces, and if you hire us, we can help you take the steps needed to protect your financial interests while resolving maintenance issues with precision and care. Our main office is located in Dallas, and we meet with clients by appointment at our Collin County office in Plano. We proudly serve clients in Dallas, Fort Worth, Frisco, McKinney, Rockwall, Irving, Garland, Richardson, and other cities across Dallas, Collin, Denton, Rockwall, Tarrant, and Grayson Counties. You can contact us by calling 214.692.8200 or filling out our online form to schedule a confidential meeting.