Massachusetts Family Law Blog
Three common challenges during gray divorce
Divorce is becoming less common in the United States for most age groups. That is not the case for older couples, though. In fact, according to a Wall Street Journal report, divorce for individuals over 55 occurred in about 15 out of every 1,000 married couples in...
Inheritances and Divorce – Can the Family Court give my Inheritance to my Spouse in a Divorce?
Whether or not an inheritance will be subject to division in a divorce will often hinge on whether or not the spouse has a vested interest in the inheritance, meaning that they have a right to use of the funds currently. An inheritance in the possession of one spouse...
Alimony After the 2017 Tax Code Changes
One of the givens for divorcing couples in the United States has always been the alimony is deducted from the payor’s income and includible in the recipient’s income for purposes of federal taxes. This structure provided some relief by way of a tax break for divorcing...
How Long Will Alimony Last – Alimony Modifications
One of the primary functions of the 2011 Alimony Reform Act was to set guidelines for the length of alimony awards in Massachusetts. The length of the award is now tied to the length of the marriage. The chart below lists the presumptive durational limits for alimony...
Top 5 Reasons why a Military Divorce is Different from a Civilian Divorce
1. Service Members Relief Act. This act entitles those serving in the military and on active duty status to apply for a stay of divorce proceedings when because of their service there is a material effect on their ability to participate in the divorce. The service...
Divorce: Marital Property and Trust Assets
Many people assume that money or other assets held in a trust are protected from an order of property division in a divorce, but that is often not the case. Even where a trust isn’t considered for purposes of actually property division it is often considered income...
Massachusetts Alimony Reform and Termination of Payments upon Retirement Age
In March 2012 the Alimony Reform Act went into effect and with it came new grounds for termination of alimony. One of the most talked about grounds for termination was the payor reaching social security retirement age of sixty-six and a half. The relevant language can...
Changes to Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines and Calculations
On August 1, 2013 the Chief Justice of the Trial Court released new child support guidelines, which appear to attempt to promote greater responsibility of the non-custodial parent in a child’s life by drawing a direct correlation between the amount of support paid by...
Prenuptial Agreements
Let’s face it there is nothing romantic about a premarital agreement. When people ask you about your wedding planning I can guarantee they are not asking you how your prenuptial agreement negotiations are going. Generally, most people are entering into a marriage...
Grandparent Visitation in Massachusetts
The nuclear family with a father who is the primary wage earner, the stay-at-home mom and 2.5 kids is no longer attainable for many families. It’s an ideal that for the majority of families does not fit their lifestyle or their needs. The economy as well as changing...
