This bill makes the following changes to the laws governing the award of spousal support in cases of divorce.
1. It clarifies the conditions under which general spousal support may be awarded and when a person is entitled to it.
2. It establishes a rebuttable presumption that a person is entitled to an award of general spousal support when at the time of filing for divorce the parties have been married for at least 10 years and the person's income is 75% or less of the other spouse's income. The bill requires that when determining whether to award spousal support, in addition to the factors set forth in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 19-A, section 951-A, subsection 5, a court must also consider this presumption and the presumption against awarding general spousal support that exists in current law and is allocated to a new subsection in the bill.
3. It establishes a formula for the court to calculate the amount of general spousal support and requires that the length of an award be for an indefinite period if the parties have been married for more than 20 years. These provisions are also rebuttable presumptions.
4. It clarifies how a rebuttable presumption may be rebutted and includes the requirement that any finding of the court that rebuts a rebuttable presumption must be in writing.
5. It allows for a court to award a 2nd spousal support award that will begin upon the expiration of a child support obligation if a final divorce judgment includes both an award of spousal support and a child support obligation that will expire within 3 years of the date of that judgment.
6. It amends the list of factors that a court must consider under Title 19-A, section
951-A, subsection 5 to modify how the court must consider the tax implications of dividing marital property and the effect of child support obligations.

Statutes affected:
Bill Text LD 2142, SP 860: 19-A.951