Date: February 23, 2011
By: Attorney Renay S. Smallcomb, Associate, DiFruscia Law Offices
In this, the third part of our series on marital dissolutions, we explore the issue of alimony, one of the most contentious issues in a divorce. Both Massachusetts and New Hampshire have gender-neutral alimony statutes that allow the court to award alimony to either the husband or wife on a complaint for divorce. The alimony statutes of both states also set forth factors to be considered by the court in determining whether alimony should be awarded and if so in what amount. Factors the court must consider that are common to both states include the length of the marriage, the conduct of the parties during the marriage, the age, health, station, occupation, amount and sources of income, vocational skills, employability, estate, liabilities and needs of each of the parties, the opportunity of each for future acquisition of capital assets and income and the needs of the children. The court may also consider certain discretionary factors, such as the contribution of each of the parties in the acquisition, preservation or appreciation in value of their respective estates, the contribution of each of the parties as homemaker to the family unit and the present and future needs of the minor children.
Newly filed legislation promises to make long-awaited and landmark reforms to Massachusetts' alimony laws. The Alimony Reform Act of 2011 proposes to create new categories of alimony, including term alimony, rehabilitative alimony, reimbursement alimony and transitional alimony. In 2008, a New Hampshire court ruled in Nassar v. Nassar that the rehabilitative principle, in which the court will award an amount for education or retraining, need not apply where the supported spouse suffers from ill health and is not capable of establishing her own income. The court in the Nasser case reversed the permanent alimony order since the wife was in good health, had no minor children to support, and had marketable skills. The trend in both states appears to favor a time certain for the termination of alimony.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact our office at 978-687-1777 or 603-898-8198 or contact me via email at rsmallcomb@difruscialaw.com.
Be sure to tune in to our cable television show, "The Law and You," hosted by Attorney Anthony DiFruscia of DiFruscia Law Offices, which airs on the Windham Cable Channel 21. This month's guest is attorney Ruth-Ellen Post of Windham. For more information, please contact Kelly O'Loughlin at (603) 434-0300.
