Family law attorney Jacqueline Harounian warns that stay-at-home spouses increasingly face smaller spousal support awards, fewer legal-fee awards, and reduced shares of marital assets as divorce law evolves. She cites shifts such as the adoption of no-fault divorce and greater gender neutrality in courts, along with rising maternal earnings and fathers seeking shared custody. Other lawyers caution outcomes still depend heavily on state law; for example, Texas limits certain spousal maintenance awards. Both attorneys agree that financial dependence carries real risk and advise planning before leaving the workforce.
Divorce Is Changing — Stay‑At‑Home Spouses Face Growing Financial Risk, Lawyer Warns
From left: wedding bands; inset, Jacqueline Harounian; and a picture of legal documents.
Divorce in the United States is evolving, and that shift is creating new financial risks for spouses who leave paid work to raise children or manage the household, warns Jacqueline Harounian, managing partner of Wisselman Harounian Family Law in New York.
Harounian tells Newsweek that the familiar pattern of one partner earning while the other cared for the home is giving way to a legal landscape that treats spouses more as individual economic actors. She argues this change — driven by no-fault divorce adoption, greater gender neutrality in courts, rising maternal earnings, and fathers seeking shared custody — has reduced long-term financial protections for many dependent spouses.
Key Observations From Practicing Attorneys
Drawing on years of experience (she was admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court in 2013), Harounian says stay-at-home spouses increasingly receive smaller spousal support awards, fewer court-ordered legal-fee awards, and reduced shares of marital assets, including businesses. "Earners are walking away with more money, and dependents are ending up with much less," she says.
"There really is no such thing as lifetime maintenance anymore. A spouse who stays home might get support, but it is not guaranteed. You have to fight for it and have a plan to support yourself."
Not all family-law practitioners see this as a single nationwide trend. Hannah Hembree Bell, founder of Hembree Bell Law Firm in Texas, emphasizes that divorce law varies by state and local practice. Texas, for example, does not typically award indefinite maintenance and caps certain spousal maintenance awards (commonly limited to 5,000 USD per month or 20 percent of the paying spouse's average monthly income in qualifying cases). Bell also reminds readers that community-property rules and other state-specific factors shape outcomes.
What This Means Practically
Prenuptial agreements are limited: They generally protect inheritance rights and premarital assets but do not automatically shield a nonworking spouse from future financial hardship. Financial dependence carries risk: Both attorneys agree couples should understand the economic consequences when one partner leaves the workforce. Business owners may retain most of the value they create during marriage, which can reduce the share available to a dependent spouse.
Steps Couples Should Consider
Harounian urges anyone considering leaving paid work or contemplating divorce to understand their rights and responsibilities, confirm realistic custody expectations, and develop a financial plan. Practical steps include documenting household contributions, seeking independent legal advice in your state, preserving or building marketable skills, and negotiating clear provisions in prenuptial or postnuptial agreements that address support and asset division.
This is not a message that marriage itself is less valuable, but a reminder that the legal and economic assumptions of past generations have shifted. Couples should plan accordingly so that caregiving choices made during a marriage do not become untenable after a separation.
Help us improve.
