Q: I'd like to know what I'm entitled to at the end of a 45 year marriage? I retired early but he still works.

A: You will have to contact a family law attorney for a specific discussion of your situation, but here are the general guidelines.

With a 45 year marriage you have the potential to receive alimony for many years (spousal support in Colorado), but there are multiple factors required by statute. The biggest factors are (1) you financial need and (2) his ability to pay. If he is near retirement this can significantly impact support. Colorado computes support by statute, so the only accurate way to make a full assessment is to plug-in the actual numbers into either the court forms or free program made available by the CO Court system.

For the property divisions, Colorado is a common law (not a community property) state. So the automatic 50-50% split required in community property states is not guaranteed in Colorado. However, most property divisions in Colorado tend to be very close to 50-50%. Factors that can impact the distribution are prenups, duration of marriage (shorter duration likely under 50%; longer duration likely 50% or more). There are other factors, such as specific financial needs of one or both parties and the existence of dependents (who will get child support).

For the divorce itself you have the options of full contested (most expense financially and emotionally), mediated divorces (less money and usually less stressful), and joint filing with or without a lawyer.

A: More information is needed to do a full assessment. Given a 45 year marriage, there is an argument he could be hitched financially to you for life. Normally with a marriage that long, you would be entitled to spousal support for at least half the length of the marriage. However, presuming he is nearing retirement age, his income is going to change at some point not too far down the road. That being said, spousal support can be modified and would then be based on current income figures at that time. Again, more information is needed to give a semi-accurate projection. In terms of his 401K and other property, those things are marital in nature and would be divided, generally equally. Social security is not considered property, but you may have options to draw based on his earnings, as opposed to yours. That decision would depend on whether what you would receive under your own auspices is less than what you would get under him, which I believe would be half the amount he receives each month. You should consult with an attorney to deal with these complex issues. These are just basic answers which can be clarified with more detail given.