Alimony

Alimony is court ordered payments for the support of one ex-spouse from the other ex-spouse.  The purpose of alimony is to allow the parties to live as near to the same “marital lifestyle” as they enjoyed while they were married. M.G.L. c.208 § 53.  Alimony tends to be a balance of the recipient’s need for alimony and the payor-spouse’s ability to pay.  The court will consider a list of statutory factors when deciding whether to issue alimony, as well as the amount and duration.  M.G.L. c.208 § 53(a).  The court will also consider the individual facts of each case when determining whether and to what extent alimony should be awarded.

Types of Alimony:

If your alimony judgment is dated before March 1, 2012, then your alimony is deemed to be general term alimony.  Alimony will only terminate if set forth in the order or judgment, under a later modification, or as otherwise provided in the statute.  However, there are exceptions that allow you to modify the alimony provisions of the judgment.  UrbanoLaw can represent you respecting whether you can modify the pre-March 1, 2012 alimony judgments.

If your Alimony judgment is dated after March 1, 2012, then the Alimony Reform Act of 2011 controls your order.  Under the Alimony Reform Act of 2011, there are four types of alimony now available. M.G.L. c.208 § 49-52.

  1. General Term Alimony;
  2. Rehabilitative Alimony;
  3. Reimbursement Alimony; and
  4. Transitional Alimony.

1. General Term Alimony:

General term alimony is the payments of support to a recipient spouse who is economically dependent. M.G.L. c.208 § 48.

The duration of and the amount to be paid under general term alimony is determined by the length of the marriage.  In some cases the court may increase the length of the marriage to also include the time the parties had an “economic marital partnership” or were living together before the marriage officially began.

Under general term alimony, when a marriage has lasted twenty (20) years or fewer, there are presumptive maximum time limits established by statute. M.G.L. c.208 § 49(b)(1)–(b)(4).

  1. If a marriage has lasted five (5) years or fewer, alimony may be awarded for one-half (1/2) the number of months of the marriage;
  2. If a marriage has lasted ten (10) years or fewer, but more than five (5) years, alimony may be awarded for sixty (60%) percent of the number of months of the marriage;
  3. Marriages that have lasted fifteen (15) years or fewer but more than ten (10) years, alimony may be awarded for seventy (70%) percent of the number of months of the marriage; and
  4. Marriages that have lasted twenty (20) years or fewer but more than fifteen (15) years, alimony may be awarded for eighty (80%) percent of the number of months of the marriage.

Under general term alimony, when a marriage has lasted longer than 20 years, the court may make an indefinite alimony order. M.G.L. c.208 § 49(c).

When establishing general term alimony, the court may deviate from the above and use longer time limits and higher amounts than those set forth in the statute.  If the court decides to do this, the court will need to issue written findings that the deviation is “required in the interests of justice.” M.G.L. c.208 § 49(b).  On the other hand, the court may also deviate from the above and use a shorter time limit than those set forth in the statute.  In such cases, the court is not required to issue written findings that the deviation is required in the interests of justice. M.G.L. c.208 § 49(b).

Termination of general term alimony now occurs when the recipient of the alimony remarries, the payor attains “full retirement age,” or there is a death of either party.  In addition, general term alimony can be suspended, reduced, or terminated if the recipient spouse moves in and lives with someone else and certain “common household” requirements of the statute are met.

2. Rehabilitative Alimony:

Rehabilitative alimony is the periodic payment of support to a recipient spouse who is expected to become self-sufficient by a predicted time. M.G.L. c.208 § 50.

Rehabilitative alimony is payable for a maximum of five (5) years and is designed to help the recipient spouse become economically independent.  When establishing the length of a marriage to calculate extending rehabilitative alimony, the court upon written findings, may deviate and increase the length of the marriage to include the time the parties had an “economic marital partnership” during a cohabitation period before the marriage officially began.  M.G.L. c.208 § 50. 

Termination of Rehabilitative alimony occurs when the recipient of the alimony remarries, there is a death of either party, or upon the occurrence of a specific future even that is set forth in the judgement.  Rehabilitative alimony is modifiable.  

3. Reimbursement Alimony:

Reimbursement alimony is the one-time or periodic payment of support to a recipient spouse after a marriage of not more than five (5) years to compensate the recipient spouse for both the economic and non-economic contributions made to the financial resources of the payor spouse.  M.G.L. c.208 § 51.

Reimbursement alimony is paid as a one-time payment or until a certain specific date set in the judgment.

Termination of rehabilitative alimony occurs when there is a death of the recipient spouse or upon a certain date that set forth in the judgment. Reimbursement alimony is not modifiable.

4. Transitional Alimony:

Transitional alimony is the periodic or one-time payment of support to a recipient spouse after a marriage of not more than five (5) years to transition the recipient spouse to an adjusted lifestyle or location as a result of the divorce.  M.G.L. c.208 § 48.

Transitional alimony, which is only allowed in marriages of five (5) years or fewer, cannot last longer than three (3) years from the date of the divorce.

Termination of transitional alimony occurs when there is a death of the recipient spouse or upon a certain date that is not longer than three (3) years from the date of the divorce.  Transitional alimony is not modifiable, extended, or replaced with another form of alimony.

Modification of Alimony:

If your divorce decree states that alimony will merge into your divorce decree then alimony can be modified.  Conversely, if your divorce decree states that alimony will survive your divorce decree, then alimony cannot be modified unless the court finds that “countervailing equities” warrant the modification.

Tax Consequences:

It is important to note, as of December 31, 2018, the Federal Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017 eliminates the tax deductions for the payor of alimony and makes the alimony tax free to the payee.  Please consult a tax attorney to see how these change could affect your situation.