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

Hi there,

I hope you are enjoying our belated summer weather as much as I have been.  I missed posting last week because I couldn't drag myself out of my garden to sit at the computer.

It looks like alimony reform is almost here!

The next legislative steps appear pretty certain and those in the know (not me) seem to be anticipating passage in the current legislative session, which ends with June.  The bill was due to be debated today, it is already out of the judiciary committee, but debate on the floor was delayed due to efforts to help the folks in Springfield.

The act makes a lengthy and complex change in the law, which will trigger a lot of modification cases.  It will also cause a lot of unexpected litigation, as payors attempt to prove their exes are cohabiting.
 

I think that an unanticipated side effect will be a surge in divorce filings, as the bill contains drop dead times when filing for divorce later rather than sooner, will result in paying alimony longer.

 
But there is a law of unintended consequences.  Any time the legislature or the courts change the way families are dissolved there are abiding socioeconomic consequences that have usually not been considered.  There will immediately be a number of older alimony recipients who have made certain plans for retirement and whose lives will be undoubtedly disrupted.  I am old enough to have seen the drastic socioeconomic results of the passage of the no fault divorce laws.  Women's post-divorce economic standing dropped considerably, the numbers of divorces increased, and as a result, the status of children was affected.

I have no doubt that many situations for both genders will be improved by passage of this bill. Women are second wives as well as first wives, women as well as men pay alimony.  Divorce lawyers, myself included, are already using the proposed law to try to settle cases.  The real effects will not be visible for years to come. 

Best,
 

Nancy

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Hi there,

As Massachusetts considers refining the law on alimony, the public commentary is huge.  It has made me think through exactly what I think about the current law and the proposed changes.  I have initially addressed this in the blog, as I recognize that making alimony payments (or not making them) is one of the truly hard and hot button issues in divorce.  There are both payers and payees who have been deeply hurt and aggrieved by the system.  Most of these individuals may well find this post unpalatable.  As I think about that, I am not sure anyone finds having to pay alimony a good thing.  It is however, often a necessary evil, and as an advocate if I represent the spouse who is paying, I try to get the amount and time frame as minimal as possible.   Alternatively, when I am the advocate for the recipient, I try to get the amount and time frame as broad as possible.  That is the joy of being a litigator - you get to argue both sides of every question, sometimes on the same day.

Joking aside, I firmly believe that setting parameters for judges to follow and then allowing them discretion is the fairest way to go.  Does this mean all will be treated fairly?  Of course not!  The risks of litigation, bad lawyering, bad judging, or just plain bad luck, are why I consistently recommend that litigants settle out of court. 

However, a rigid formulaic approach to alimony would result in far more examples of unfairness than the suggested reform, as approved by the Boston Bar Association.

The suggested reform does allow Judges the authority to set a time frame for the duration of alimony, which had not previously been the case.  If passed, this should have a salutary effect, both on the results of litigation and on the terms in agreements. 

Best,

Nancy

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