As a general rule, an alimony obligation cannot usually be discharged in bankruptcy and must be paid in full.However, there are 2 exceptions: If a divorce decree specifies that an obligation to a spouse is alimony but the obligation is not actually in the nature of a direct payment to the ex-spouse, then that obligation can be discharged in bankruptcy. For example, if the divorce decree states that a spouse is to pay a marital debt and that payment is to be treated as alimony, then such a debt can be discharged, orAlso, in certain instances an ex-spouse may be able to discharge an alimony obligation if the obligation has been assigned to a third party. For example, if a spouse does not pay their court ordered alimony and the spouse who is suppossed to recieve it assigns the right to collect the payment to a thrid-party.