retroactive alimony

Retroactive alimony refers to financial support awarded by a court to a spouse for a period prior to the start of the official alimony order. Essentially, it covers past due support owed from the time when the spouse should have been financially assisting but did not. This typically occurs when a court finds that one spouse’s income or circumstances changed during the marriage or divorce proceedings, and the paying spouse is required to compensate the other for those previous financial contributions or hardships.