No, a man is not always the party that has to pay alimony in a divorce in California. When determining who pays alimony and what amount will be paid, the courts take into account a variety of factors. These factors include:
- The extent t which the earning capacity of each party is sufficient to maintain the standard of living experienced throughout the marriage
- The duration of the marriage
- The age and health of the parties
- The needs of each party based on the standard of living throughout the marriage
- The balance of hardships to each party
- The immediate and specific tax consequences to each party
- The extent to which the supported party’s earning capacity was impaired by times of unemployment incurred during the marriage to permit them to devote time to household duties
- The individual financial resources (marital and non-marital) that each party has
