Massachusetts Probate and Family Courts are statutorily authorized to establish parentage pursuant to complaints filed under M.G.L. c. 209C, § 5 (“209C”). Under 209C (specifically 209C, § 6(a)(1)), there exists a statutory presumption whereby the spouse of an...
Family Law
The Court Must Make Specific Findings as to Earning Capacity When Entering a Child Support Order Based Upon Attributed Income
In a recent Rule 23 decision, McCrea v. Clayton, a panel of the Massachusetts Appeals Court vacated and remanded the lower court’s order denying Mother’s motion to alter or amend a modification judgment that required her to pay child support to Father because the...
Beneficiary Designations & Divorce
In American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus v. Parker, the SJC ruled that a life insurance beneficiary designation naming an ex-spouse as beneficiary was revoked following the parties’ divorce by operation of law, pursuant to the Massachusetts Uniform...
Can You Keep Your House Post-Divorce?
In many divorces, the house is frequently sold during or shortly after the divorce. This is generally because one, or in some cases, two streams of income were sufficient to maintain the carrying costs on one household, but would be insufficient to maintain the...
Court Upholds Modification Judgment Shifting Custody of Children to Father When Record Reveals Mother’s Conduct Toward Father Constituted A Material Change In Circumstance Necessitating Modification In The Best Interests Of The Children.
In a recent Rule 23 decision, a panel of the Massachusetts Appeals Court upheld the lower court’s modification judgment shifting legal and primary physical custody of the parties’ two minor children from their mother to their father, noting the mother’s conduct...
Should a Pension be Considered an Asset or a Source of Income?
In Booth v. Booth, the Massachusetts Appeals Court vacated the Probate and Family Court’s decision to consider the Husband’s pension as a source of income for alimony purposes in the divorce, as well as the alimony award, and remanded. The parties were married for 35...
Can A Probate and Family Court Judge Order a Child to Be Vaccinated Over One Parent’s Objection?
Given that the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine has now been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for children above the age of 12, many divorced individuals with children in this age range may be wondering: What do I do if my co-parent and I disagree about whether our...
New Appeals Court Case Addresses Attribution Of Income Where Spouse Had Been Under-Earning In The Years Leading Up To A Divorce
In Davae v. Davae, the husband was a licensed physician, board-certified in the field of diagnostic radiology. While practicing at a medical center, the husband started a teleradiology business. The husband left his hospital practice and started working at his...
New Child Support Guidelines Will Become Effective On October 4, 2021
In accordance with federal regulations (i.e., 45 CFR, § 302.56), the Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines Task Force has completed its quadrennial review of the Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines (“Guidelines”). On August 2, 2021, the Trial Court released...
When can a child’s name be changed?
In a recent decision by the Appeals Court of Massachusetts, Gomes v. Candido, the court clarified the standard that is used when two parents disagree about their child’s surname. In the trial court, the parents, who were unmarried but in a relationship when the twin...
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