Alimony And Property
S.C. Code 20-3-130 and S.C. Code 20-3-630 — the kinds of alimony, and an equitable division of what was acquired during the marriage
In a divorce or an action for separate maintenance, the court may grant alimony in amounts and for terms it considers just, while the case is pending and permanently: periodic, lump-sum, rehabilitative, reimbursement and others.
Adultery bars alimony. No alimony may be awarded to a spouse who commits adultery before the earlier of signing a written property or marital settlement agreement, or the entry of a permanent order of separate maintenance or approving such an agreement.
Periodic alimony ends on the supported spouse's remarriage or continued cohabitation, or a death, and either side may ask the court to raise, lower or end it when circumstances change. The supporting spouse's retirement is enough to get a hearing on whether they have.
Marital property. Marital property is everything acquired during the marriage and owned when the case is filed, however title is held. Not included: inheritances and gifts from others, what each owned before the marriage, property excluded by a written agreement, and growth in that separate property not owed to the other spouse's efforts.
The court divides marital property equitably, weighing the length of the marriage, fault that affected the finances or the breakup, each spouse's contributions including as homemaker, income and earning potential, health, retirement benefits, the family home and the children, taxes and debts, among other factors.
The court has no authority to divide nonmarital property. A particular case is a question for the family court and a licensed South Carolina attorney.
Sources for this section (4)
- S.C. Code 20-3-130 — Award of alimony and other allowances
- S.C. Code 20-3-170 — Modification, confirmation, or termination of alimony; retirement by supporting spouse
- S.C. Code 20-3-620 — Apportionment factors
- S.C. Code 20-3-630 — Marital property; nonmarital property
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed South Carolina attorney.