Massachusetts Divorce Law Monitor : Massachusetts Divorce Lawyer & Attorney : Nancy Van Tine : Burns & Levinson Law Firm : MA Divorce & Family Law : Massachusetts Divorce Law Monitor

Hi there,

Fourth in our topics to discuss is alimony.  In addition to everything else you need to think of, another important consideration when getting divorced is alimony.

You first need to decide if your case is an alimony case.  You can do that by answering these questions:

• Does one of you earn substantially more than the other? 
• Are there economic needs of one party that are not being met by her income?

Alimony is determined based on the needs of one party for support and the ability of the other to pay.

The reverse of child support; alimony reduces the payor's taxable income and is taxable to the recipient.

If you have children, the child support guidelines will apply to the first $250,000 of income, however, you can agree to allocate the support payment between alimony and child support to get the maximum tax benefit for the family unit.

Alimony currently is a very contentious area of divorce law.  There is a task force on revisions to the alimony law pending and there has been a great deal of public discussion surrounding that.

When deciding, you should also consider:

• Timing of payments
• When and why there can be increases
• If there is bonus income involved how alimony can or should be paid from the bonus, it is usual and I think, sensible, to set a percentage for alimony to be paid from the bonus on an 'if and when received' basis.
• Reductions and termination.

One of the real problems with alimony is that the Courts still lack the power to set an end date although there is legislation pending to give them that authority.

Best,

Nancy

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Hi there,

Third in our outline of topics to consider when getting divorced are additional, child related expenses. The child support monies are intended to cover food, shelter and clothing; but as anyone who has raised a child knows, that is only the beginning. Some of these expenses should be shared with the other parent.

Uninsured medical expenses:
According to the child support guidelines, the primary caretaker of the kids pays the first $250 per year for all the kids in combined routine uninsured medical and dental expenses. After that, the parents divide the costs equally. This sounds simple, but it can result in accounting and repayment problems. Be sure to keep all records of bills paid and be sure to submit the bills for timely payment both to the other parent and the insurance company if you need to. Since insurance companies differ wildly in their requirements, as do medical and dental providers, it is best to consider your situation from both aspects and have some language in your agreement that takes care of all forseen possibilities.

Extracurricular activities, and other costs:
These are no longer considered to be part of child support, so it is necessary to have an agreement on what extracurricular activities the kids will have. Other costs can include sports gear, art supplies, etc. that are necessary for the planned activities; it can also cover such things as summers abroad and church trips, the list goes on and on. A good rule of thumb is to try and keep the kids lives as stable as possible, so if you can, at least keep them in their current activities. You should have both a mechanism for agreement on the activities, and also a mechanism for division of payment.

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Hi there,

Here is the first topic in the series: Top 10 Topics to Consider When Getting Divorced.

If you have kids who aren't grown up, then this can be the most difficult area to navigate.  You will want to consider all of the topics in A and B below, and you may need to consider the topics in C, D and E as well.

A.  Legal custody, joint vs. sole, what legal custody means; who makes major decisions such as health, religion, education, moral development; and/or emergency decisions?

Most folks end up with joint legal custody, which actually is presumed to be the default format in Massachusetts.  Joint legal custody means that the parents need to communicate, and hopefully agree on the major decisions listed above.  This can be very hard in a high conflict situation, and impossible in a situation involving violence, mental health or substance abuse issues.  In fact, the state is asking people who are getting divorced because they can't communicate, to continue to communicate about their children.

I have the utmost respect for those who manage sometimes after the divorce is done, to step back, take themselves out of the equation and do what is best for the kids.  I have some prior posts about holiday scheduling that may be useful.  Sometimes, parents can't do it themselves and a Parent Coordinator is necessary.

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Hi there,

I hope you all had wonderful holidays!

A few weeks ago, a client who was going through a mediated divorce asked about a list of topics to consider in crafting his agreement with his wife and their mediator.  This seemed like a useful tool for anyone considering divorce, and as I thought more about it, the list grew and grew.  Over the next few weeks I will be posting thoughts and considerations about the top 10 topics to think about when getting divorced.

I will cover (and I bet the list will grow):

1.  The kids

2.  Child support and the child support guidelines

3.  Education and activities

4.  Alimony

5.  Life insurance and medical insurance

6.  Tax considerations

7.  Division of real estate

8.  Division of other property

9.  Debts and credit cards

10.  Everything else that should normally be covered in a divorce agreement

I also will be changing the Monday Miscellany format to only a couple of times a month. 

Best,

Nancy

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