This article identifies and analyzes the main directions of modernization of the legal institution of alimony, due to changes in social reality. The current legislation proceeds from the need to strengthen the social institution of the family, but does not always take into account modern trends in the life of society, which to a certain extent hinders the guaranteed implementation of alimony rights and their effective protection. The author examines giving the institution of alimony new optional goals due to the strengthening of intersectoral interaction of family and other branches of law and notes the penetration of public law goals into the private sphere of family life. The author’s fears are caused by the tendency to increase the potential of civil law principles in the regulation of alimony relations, which is formed in law enforcement practice, which prevents the proper provision of priority protection of the rights and interests of minors and disabled family members. The author pays special attention to the problem of shifting emphasis in ensuring a fair balance of participants in family and other relations, which allows summarizing the transformation of the legislative concept “priority interests of the recipient of alimony - interests of the alimony payer” into the triad developed at the law enforcement level “interests of the recipient of alimony - interests of the payer of alimony - interests of third parties persons ”, which, however, is not always balanced due to non-compliance with the criterion of reasonable sufficiency of the needs of the recipient of alimony. An analysis of the features of ensuring the gender balance of the parties to the alimony relationship allows us to come to the conclusion that at the law enforcement level, at the law enforcement level, unjustified legislative restrictions on the alimony rights of husbands (ex-husbands) caring for a child under three years of age have been successfully overcome.