7.5 Retroactivity, Prescription, & Peremption

An award of spousal support is retroactive to the judicial demand date.1  This applies to any initial setting, modification, or termination, but the court can also fix a retroactive date, upon good cause shown.2

The right to claim the obligation of spousal support is subject to a peremptive period of 3 years following the signing of the divorce or the day a judgment terminating a previous judgment of spousal support is signed, if the previous judgement was signed in an action commenced either before the signing of the judgment of divorce or within 3 years thereafter.3  What about a payor who voluntarily pays support? The law further clarifies that in this situation, the peremption occurs three years following the last voluntary payment by payor.4

The right to obtain a judgment for arrearages for spousal support has a liberative prescriptive period of 5 years.5  Note that if the obligation to pay was a conventional one, prescription for arrearages would be 10 years.6  The prescriptive period for an action on arrearages for spousal support is also shorter than the one applicable to actions for arrearages of child support,7  so be mindful of your time calculations.

• 1La. R.S. 9:321.
• 2Id.
• 3La. C.C. art. 117.
• 4La. C.C. art. 117(3).
• 5La. C.C. art. 3497.1.
• 6See La. C.C. art. 3499.
• 7See La. C.C. art. 3501.1.