What are the couple’s relative incomes?
It’s a fact of life: Those with more money have the greater burden to pay. Some states recognize a “right” of the spouses to live “according to the means to which they have become accustomed.” But in the real world, this often translates into the “means in which they wish they were accustomed.” The courts when recognizing this right will attempt to adjust the incomes of the spouses to approximate, as closely as possible, the prior lifestyle. This of course heavily penalizes the higher-earning spouse, while granting the lower wage earner a steady stream of additional funds.
