Texas has some of the most restrictive spousal maintenance laws in the country. Unlike many states where alimony is routinely awarded in longer marriages, Texas imposes strict eligibility requirements, caps on the amount and duration of support, and an explicit legislative preference for limiting maintenance to the shortest period necessary for the receiving spouse to become self-supporting. Understanding these rules — and how to navigate them strategically on either side of a maintenance dispute — requires an attorney who knows Texas Family Code Chapter 8 inside and out.
The Law Office of Ryan Putz represents clients on both sides of spousal maintenance questions in Walker County divorce proceedings. Whether you are seeking maintenance after a long marriage or working to limit an unfair support claim against you, Ryan Putz provides experienced, straightforward guidance in the District Court of Walker County and the surrounding region.
What Is Spousal Maintenance in Texas?
Spousal maintenance is financial support paid by one former spouse to the other after a divorce. In everyday language it is commonly called alimony. In Texas, the term "spousal maintenance" refers specifically to court-ordered support governed by the Texas Family Code. A separate mechanism called contractual alimony — negotiated between the parties and set out in the divorce settlement — operates differently and is discussed in detail below.
Spousal maintenance is not automatically awarded in a Texas divorce. The court must find that the requesting spouse both meets a statutory eligibility threshold and will lack sufficient property after the divorce to provide for their minimum reasonable needs. Both conditions must be satisfied.
Important distinction: Court-ordered spousal maintenance (Texas Family Code § 8.051 et seq.) is subject to strict eligibility requirements and caps on amount and duration. Contractual alimony — agreed support terms negotiated in a settlement — is not subject to those statutory limits and is enforceable as a contract. Many parties negotiate contractual alimony even when statutory maintenance would not be available.
Eligibility for Spousal Maintenance Under Texas Law
Under Texas Family Code § 8.051, a spouse seeking maintenance must first establish that they will lack sufficient property — including property received in the divorce — to provide for their minimum reasonable needs after the divorce. If that threshold is met, the spouse must also satisfy at least one of the following eligibility criteria:
1. Family Violence
The paying spouse was convicted of, or received deferred adjudication for, a criminal offense constituting family violence — committed during the marriage against the requesting spouse or the requesting spouse's child — within two years before the date the divorce suit was filed OR while the suit is pending. This is the only eligibility ground that does not require a minimum marriage length.
2. Marriage of 10 or More Years With Inability to Earn Sufficient Income
The marriage lasted at least 10 years and the requesting spouse lacks the ability to earn sufficient income to provide for their minimum reasonable needs due to one of the following:
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An incapacitating physical or mental disability
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Responsibility for a child of the marriage who requires substantial care and personal supervision because of a physical or mental disability and who therefore prevents the spouse from earning sufficient income
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Lack of sufficient earning ability in the labor market — the spouse has been out of the workforce or is otherwise unable to earn enough to meet minimum needs after reasonable effort
3. Disability of the Requesting Spouse
An incapacitating physical or mental disability of the requesting spouse that prevents them from earning sufficient income to provide for their minimum reasonable needs. This ground does not require a minimum marriage length but the disability must be established medically.
4. Responsibility for a Disabled Child
The requesting spouse is the custodian of a child of the marriage who has a physical or mental disability requiring such substantial care and personal supervision from the spouse that the spouse is prevented from earning sufficient income outside the home. This ground also does not require a minimum marriage length.
Minimum Reasonable Needs: Texas courts define minimum reasonable needs as the basic expenses necessary to maintain a modest but adequate standard of living. This is a relatively low threshold — it does not mean maintaining the marital standard of living. A spouse who receives substantial separate property or a significant share of the community estate may not meet the threshold even if they cannot immediately replace their marital income.
How Much Spousal Maintenance Can Be Awarded?
Texas Family Code § 8.055 caps the amount of court-ordered spousal maintenance at the lesser of:
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$5,000 per month, OR
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20% of the paying spouse's average monthly gross income
Within that cap, the court has discretion to set the amount based on the following factors:
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Each spouse's financial resources and ability to meet their own needs independently
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Each spouse's education and employment history, and the time and cost needed for the requesting spouse to acquire sufficient education or training to enable appropriate employment
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The duration of the marriage
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The age, employment history, earning ability, and physical and emotional condition of the requesting spouse
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The effect of the child-rearing responsibilities on either spouse's ability to work
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Acts of adultery or cruel treatment by either spouse
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The comparative financial resources of the spouses, including their separate estates
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The contribution of one spouse as homemaker
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Any marital misconduct, including dissipation of marital assets
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The paying spouse's ability to meet their own financial needs while paying maintenance
Courts are required under Texas law to "provide for the shortest reasonable period" of maintenance that allows the requesting spouse to earn sufficient income — the explicit legislative goal is self-sufficiency, not indefinite support. This shapes how courts think about both amount and duration.
Duration of Spousal Maintenance in Texas
Texas Family Code § 8.054 caps the duration of spousal maintenance based on the length of the marriage and the eligibility ground:
Eligibility Ground / Marriage Length Maximum Duration of Maintenance
Family violence ground (any marriage length) Up to 5 years
Marriage of 10–19 years Up to 5 years
Marriage of 20–29 years Up to 7 years
Marriage of 30 years or more Up to 10 years
Disability of requesting spouse or disabled child (any length) Indefinite — as long as the disability continues
These are maximum caps — the court can and often does award maintenance for a shorter period than the maximum. Maintenance terminates automatically upon the occurrence of any of the following events, whichever is earliest:
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The death of either former spouse
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The remarriage of the receiving spouse
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A court finding that the receiving spouse is cohabiting with another person in a permanent place of abode on a continuing conjugal basis
If the paying spouse believes that one of these termination events has occurred, they can file a motion to terminate maintenance in the court that entered the order.
Modification and Termination of Spousal Maintenance Orders
Court-ordered spousal maintenance can be modified or terminated before the end of the ordered period upon a showing of a material and substantial change in circumstances. Common grounds for seeking modification or early termination include:
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A significant increase or decrease in either party's income or earning capacity
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The receiving spouse's cohabitation with a romantic partner in a permanent conjugal relationship (grounds for termination, not just modification)
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A change in the receiving spouse's health — either improvement enabling employment or deterioration extending the need
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Loss of employment by the paying spouse
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Remarriage of the receiving spouse (automatic termination by law)
Either party may file a motion to modify or terminate spousal maintenance in the court that originally entered the order. The moving party bears the burden of establishing the material and substantial change.
Contractual alimony is governed by the agreement itself, not the statutory modification standard. Whether contractual alimony can be modified depends entirely on the language of the settlement agreement. If modification rights are not addressed in the agreement, they may not exist — making careful drafting essential at the time of settlement.
Contractual Alimony — A More Flexible Alternative
What Is Contractual Alimony?
Contractual alimony is spousal support agreed upon by the parties as part of their divorce settlement and incorporated into the divorce decree. Unlike court-ordered maintenance, contractual alimony is not subject to the eligibility requirements, amount caps, or duration limits of Texas Family Code Chapter 8. The parties can agree to any amount, duration, and terms they choose — including amounts exceeding $5,000 per month or support for a marriage shorter than 10 years.
Strategic Uses of Contractual Alimony
Contractual alimony is a valuable tool in divorce negotiations for several reasons:
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Availability when statutory maintenance is not — a spouse who does not qualify for court-ordered maintenance (e.g., because the marriage was less than 10 years) may still negotiate contractual alimony as part of a global settlement
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Greater flexibility on amount and duration — the parties can tailor the support to fit their specific financial circumstances without the statutory caps
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Tax planning considerations — the parties may structure contractual alimony with specific tax treatment in mind (note: the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 eliminated the alimony deduction for agreements executed after December 31, 2018, so tax neutrality is now the baseline)
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Certainty for both parties — a clear agreement eliminates the uncertainty of litigation over whether the court will award maintenance and in what amount
Enforcement of Contractual Alimony
Because contractual alimony is a contract term — not a court-ordered obligation — enforcement mechanisms differ from those available for statutory maintenance. Statutory maintenance can be enforced through contempt of court, which carries the potential for jail time. Contractual alimony is enforced as a breach of contract, which typically means filing a civil action for damages. Some divorce decrees expressly incorporate the alimony agreement in a way that gives it the enforcement mechanisms of a court order — proper drafting of the decree is critical to ensure the receiving spouse has the strongest possible remedies available.
The Law Office of Ryan Putz carefully reviews and drafts contractual alimony provisions to ensure they are enforceable, clearly written, and protect your interests whether you are the receiving or the paying spouse.
Enforcement of Spousal Maintenance Orders
If a former spouse is failing to pay court-ordered spousal maintenance, the receiving spouse has several enforcement tools available:
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Contempt of court — the paying spouse can be found in contempt of the court's maintenance order, which may result in fines and, in some circumstances, confinement
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Income withholding — like child support, spousal maintenance can be enforced through a wage withholding order served on the paying spouse's employer
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Motion to enforce — the receiving spouse files an enforcement motion in the 12th District Court and obtains a judgment for the unpaid amounts, which can then be collected through standard judgment enforcement mechanisms
Maintenance arrears are not subject to the statute of limitations in the same way as ordinary debts — unpaid maintenance can be collected long after it became due. If your former spouse has missed maintenance payments, contact us promptly to discuss your enforcement options.
Spousal Maintenance in Mediation and Settlement
Most Walker County divorce cases — including those with contested spousal maintenance claims — are resolved through mediation before trial. Mediation gives both parties the opportunity to negotiate a resolution that may look very different from what a judge would order at trial. Some commonly negotiated outcomes in mediation include:
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Agreeing on contractual alimony even when statutory maintenance would not be awarded — giving the paying spouse certainty and the receiving spouse needed support
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Trading maintenance for a larger share of the marital estate — one spouse may accept a one-time property award in lieu of ongoing support
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Setting a defined step-down schedule — maintenance starts at a higher amount and decreases over time as the receiving spouse is expected to become more self-sufficient
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Agreed modification or termination triggers — the parties can build in specific events that will automatically modify or end maintenance, reducing the likelihood of future litigation
Ryan Putz is an experienced negotiator who understands the strategic value of spousal maintenance in the broader context of a divorce settlement. We help clients evaluate whether litigation or negotiation better serves their financial interests and advocate effectively at the mediation table.
Defending Against a Spousal Maintenance Claim
If your spouse is seeking spousal maintenance in your Walker County divorce, you have the right to challenge the claim. Common defensive strategies include:
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Challenging eligibility — contesting whether the marriage meets the 10-year threshold (accounting for separation periods), whether the family violence conviction requirement is met, or whether the requesting spouse truly lacks the ability to earn sufficient income
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Demonstrating earning capacity — presenting evidence that the requesting spouse has marketable job skills, employable work history, or access to education and training that would enable self-sufficiency within a reasonable period
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Contesting minimum reasonable needs — showing that the property the requesting spouse receives in the divorce division, together with their own income and earning capacity, is sufficient to meet their minimum needs
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Challenging the amount — presenting evidence that the requesting spouse's actual minimum needs are lower than claimed, or that the paying spouse's resources are insufficient to pay the requested amount while meeting their own needs
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Challenging the duration — arguing for the shortest reasonable maintenance period based on the requesting spouse's realistic path to self-sufficiency
Every spousal maintenance claim requires a fact-specific analysis. Ryan Putz will carefully evaluate the evidence on both sides and develop a defense strategy tailored to your financial circumstances.
Why Choose the Law Office of Ryan Putz?
Spousal maintenance disputes involve complex financial analysis, a thorough understanding of Texas Family Code Chapter 8, and the strategic judgment to know when to fight and when to negotiate. The Law Office of Ryan Putz brings all of that to your Walker County case.
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Deep knowledge of Texas Family Code Chapter 8 and the Walker County court's approach to maintenance awards
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Experience on both sides — representing spouses seeking maintenance and spouses defending against claims
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Skilled in both litigation and mediation — prepared to take your case to trial if necessary, but focused on outcomes that genuinely serve your interests
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Thorough financial analysis — we understand how maintenance interacts with property division, tax implications, and long-term financial planning
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Careful drafting — contractual alimony provisions are drafted to be enforceable and unambiguous
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Practices regularly in the 12th District Court, Walker County
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Personal attention — you work directly with Ryan Putz, not support staff
The Law Office of Ryan Putz serves clients throughout Walker County, including Huntsville and surrounding communities, and Montgomery County from our satellite office in The Woodlands. We also serve clients in San Jacinto County, Madison County, and Trinity County.
