Massachusetts Alimony Lawyer

Legal Help with Massachusetts Alimony and Child Support Cases

  Massachusetts has recently changed its laws regarding alimony (spousal support). Many people currently paying or receiving alimony will be effected so expect to see an increase in the number of cases in Massachusetts family court from people seeking a modification of their alimony order.

We are Fall River, MA, child support attorneys Wilfred C. Driscoll, Jr. and Laurie A. Stanford. Our combined experience practicing family law in Massachusetts is more than five decades! Our firm is well known as a dedicated legal advocate, willing to go to court to ensure our client's financial interests are protected. But Attorney Driscoll is also a certified divorce mediator. He has helped hundreds of clients successfully resolve their differences in matters such as the division of marital assets and the drafting of parenting plans.

 

Changes in Massachusetts Alimony Law

Alimony Term Limits

  • Long term marriages (more than 20 years): Alimony will end at retirement age as defined by the Social Security Act.
  • 20 years or less but greater than 15 years: Maximum alimony term is 80% of the number of months of marriage.
  • 15 years or less but greater than 10 years: Maximum alimony term is 70% of the number of months of marriage.
  • 10 years or less but greater than 5 years: Maximum alimony term is 60% of the number of months of marriage.
  • 5 years or less: Maximum alimony term is 50% of the number of months of marriage.
  • Other term limits apply for rehabilitative alimony, reimbursement alimony, and transitional alimony.

Termination of Alimony

  • Alimony Ends with the Remarriage of the Alimony Recipient
  • Co-Habitation Suspends, Reduces, or Terminates Alimony: "General Term Alimony shall be suspended, reduced or terminated upon the cohabitation of the recipient spouse when the payer shows that the recipient has maintained a common household with another person for a continuous period of at least three months."
  • Alimony and Child Support

  • Child Support: Gross Income is Excluded From Alimony: "For purposes of setting an alimony order, the court shall exclude from its income calculation gross income which the court has already considered for setting a child support order..."
  • Child Support: Alimony Term is Co-Terminus with Child Support: "Where the Court orders alimony concurrent with or subsequent to a child support order, the combined duration of alimony and child support shall not exceed the longer of: (i) the alimony duration available at the time of divorce; or (ii) rehabilitative alimony commencing upon the termination of child support. "
  • Alimony and Income

  • Alimony Amount is Limited: "... the amount of alimony should generally not exceed the recipient's need or 30 percent to 35 percent of the difference between the parties gross incomes established at the time of the order being issued."
  • Second Wife's (Husband's) Income and Assets Excluded: "In the event of the payer's remarriage, income and assets of the payer's spouse shall not be considered in a re-determination of alimony in a modification action."
  • A Second Job or Overtime Income is Not Included in Alimony Modification: "Income from a second job or overtime work shall be presumed immaterial to alimony modification if:
    (1) A party works more than a single full-time equivalent position; and
    (2) The second job or overtime commenced after entry of the initial order."
  • Payment of Health Insurance and/or Life Insurance Reduces Alimony Payment

    In setting an initial alimony order, or in modifying an existing order, the court may deviate from duration and amount limits for General Term Alimony and Rehabilitative Alimony upon written findings that deviation is necessary. Grounds for deviation may include:

    • Whether the payer spouse is providing health insurance and the cost of health insurance for the recipient spouse;
    • Whether the payer spouse has been ordered to secure life insurance for the benefit of the recipient spouse and the cost of such insurance;

    Alimony Term Extensions Are Limited And Require Clear And Convincing Evidence

    "The court may grant a recipient an extension of an existing alimony order for good cause shown. In granting extension, the court must enter written findings of:

    • A material change of circumstance that occurred after entry of the alimony judgment; and
    • Reasons for the extension that are supported by clear and convincing evidence.

    Contact the Massachusetts Alimony attorneys at the law offices of Driscoll Sanford Family Law

    If you believe your alimony order should change as a result of changes in the law, call our office at (508) 672-8718 or email Driscoll Sanford Family Law to schedule a free consultation.

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