Divorced and Struggling: Can You Force an Ex to Pay Alimony?
A Social Security recipient with minimal assets wonders if she can compel her wealthy ex-husband to honor alimony obligations. Here's what experts say.
For many divorced Americans living on fixed incomes, the gap between a modest Social Security check and the cost of daily life is bridged — at least in theory — by court-ordered alimony. But when a high-net-worth ex-spouse simply refuses to pay, the legal and emotional calculus becomes far more complicated. That is precisely the situation facing one woman who receives $1,460 per month in Social Security benefits while her former husband, 74, reportedly holds assets worth millions.
Alimony, or spousal support, is a binding legal obligation when ordered by a court, and non-payment is treated as contempt — a serious matter with real consequences. Enforcement mechanisms vary by state but can include wage garnishment, asset liens, seizure of tax refunds, and in extreme cases, incarceration. The existence of a documented financial disparity — a struggling ex-wife on one side, a millionaire former husband on the other — can strengthen a contempt motion considerably, since courts generally have little patience for wealthy obligors who simply choose not to comply.
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The challenge, however, is that enforcement requires legal action, which itself costs money and time that a cash-strapped retiree may not easily have. Family law attorneys often work on contingency or reduced-fee arrangements in high-asset divorce cases, and some states have legal aid organizations that assist lower-income individuals in exactly these circumstances. Documenting the ex-spouse's financial statements — as the woman in this case appears to have done — is a critical first step that gives any attorney a meaningful foundation to work from.
Beyond the immediate enforcement question, this case raises a broader issue about retirement-age divorce and financial vulnerability. Women who divorce later in life frequently face sharper income cliffs than men, particularly when their earning histories were interrupted by caregiving. Social Security benefits for a divorced spouse can reach up to 50% of the ex-partner's benefit if the marriage lasted at least 10 years, which may represent an additional resource worth investigating for those in similar situations.
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