From a legal perspective, getting hitched in Massachusetts is fairly quick and simple, requiring little more than a valid marriage license and a proper officiant. It is not even necessary to be wed by a clergy member or Justice of the Peace, as anyone over the age of...
Alimony
Court Deviates From Durational Limit With Extension Of Alimony Paid To A Disabled Spouse
Since the enactment of the Alimony Reform Act of 2011 (the "Act"), alimony awards once considered ambiguous or lifetime entitlements are now subject to specific, durational time limits based upon the length of the parties' marriage. But, under what circumstances might...
Supreme Judicial Court Determines that Retirement Provision of Massachusetts Alimony Reform Act Is Not Retroactive
On January 20, 2015, the Supreme Judicial Court issued decisions in three cases involving an important provision of the Massachusetts Alimony Reform Act ("the Act"). In each of these cases, which are described more fully below, the alimony payor wanted to terminate...
Surviving Alimony Agreements
The Massachusetts Appeals Court recently upheld the "non-modifiability" of surviving alimony agreements under the Alimony Reform Act of 2011 ("act"). The case is called Lalchandani v. Roddy. Specifically, the court in the Lalchandani case cited to Section 4(c) of the...
Trial Court Declines to Extend Alimony Despite Wealthy Former Husband’s Ability to Pay
The Alimony Reform Act of 2011 provides for alimony to presumptively terminate when a payor reaches full retirement age unless a Court finds that a material change in circumstances has occurred and there is clear and convincing evidence to support an extension of the...
“Self-Modifying” Alimony Provision Struck Down by Massachusetts Appeals Court
In a recent Appeals Court case of Hassey v. Hassey, a provision in a divorce judgment requiring a husband to pay thirty percent of his anticipated future gross income to his former wife was struck down as inconsistent with the terms of the Alimony Reform Act of 2011....
Highest Court Rules that Temporary Alimony is “Separate and Distinct” from General Term Alimony
The enactment of the Alimony Reform Act of 2011, which went into effect March 1, 2012, was hailed as the most dramatic reform in family law in decades. The sweeping new law effectively ended the reign of lifetime alimony in Massachusetts, tying the length of time that...
Modifying Alimony Orders of Other States
With the enactment of the Alimony Reform Act of 2011, almost every former spouse with an alimony order has questioned whether he or she may be subject to the relief from, or the loss of, support payments under the new law. While the provisions of the Act clearly apply...
Prenuptial Agreements
Flowers are blooming, temperatures are rising --- Spring is in the air. Wedding season is upon us - save the date postcards were mailed in January and June wedding dates are just around the corner. Just when you think all the wedding planning is almost complete, one...
“What Happened in Vegas” is Fair Game in Divorce Court… and the “Cost” of a Weekend in Sin City Could be Alimony and Property Payments to Your Former Spouse
The Bachelor Party. In the UK, it's known as "Stag Night"; in France, "enterrement de vie de garcon" - literally, "burial/funeral of the life as a bachelor." For grooms-to-be across the globe, it is a time honored tradition, and in the US, Las Vegas is commonly known...
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