Appeals Court confirms Survived Agreements are not Modifiable, even under the Alimony Reform Act: Lalchandani v. Roddy

This post written in collaboration with Jason V. Owens, Esq. of Stevenson & Lynch, P.C.

The Appeals Court recently decided another alimony modification case, Lalchandani v. Roddy (AC 13-P-1988), but don't get excited. The case doesn't contain any revelations. The issue presented in Lalchandani v. Roddy is whether a husband who has reached federal retirement age can seek to terminate his alimony obligation, despite a survival clause prohibiting modification in a divorce agreement, where the parties subsequently agreed to reduce the husband's alimony after the divorce. In this case, the flaw in the husband’s argument was easy to spot: the modification agreement that the parties entered after the divorce also contained a survival clause that prohibited any further reduction in the alimony unless husband becomes “totally disabled such that he is completely prevented from working”.

Since, the Alimony Reform Act is quite clear that surviving alimony provisions cannot be modified under the Act, the only real issue in the case was whether the survival clause in the judgment was ambiguous. Unsurprisingly, the Appeals Court found that the “total disability” clause in the modification agreement was clear and enforceable, and denied the husband’s request to terminate alimony on the sole basis of his age. (Husband did not allege that he was totally disabled.)

Frankly, it is somewhat surprising that the Appeals Court elected to publish this opinion, given the narrow scope of the decision. Even more interesting, the Appeals Court flagged the bigger issue that the SJC is now working on: namely, whether the duration limits on alimony set forth in the 2011 alimony reform act apply to any alimony orders pre-dating the effective date of the act, March 1, 2012. In Lalchandani v. Roddy, the Appeals Court flirts with deciding whether modification of alimony orders under the alimony act are strictly prospective, stating, “it is true, as the husband points out, that the act provides that general term alimony orders terminate upon a payor attaining full retirement age …” However, the Court pulls back at the last second in Footnote 9, explaining that the Court “need not” determine “whether the act is prospective only” as a general matter, since the Court was able to resolve the case on other grounds.

We'll have to continue waiting for a decision on the three outstanding SJC cases for guidance on whether the Act can modify alimony on pre-Act agreements and judgments.

Stay tuned!

Comments

2024 U.S. Presidential Party Platforms - What are the policy positions that could affect families?

While the laws that affect family formation, marriage and divorce are often made at the state level, there are also many policies and laws at the federal level that affect families and children. Just some examples from recent years that have impacted families in my mediation practice include changes to the federal tax laws (such as the elimination of the alimony tax deduction ) and U.S. Supreme Court rulings on same sex marriage and reproductive health rights. In just over a month, the United States presidential election will have a significant impact on these federal policies going forward, and could choose the next appointments to the U.S. Supreme Court as well. In 2016 and 2020 we shared what each presidential platform said about families and policy regarding family formation and dissolution, and below we'll provide you an update on the 2024 presidential platforms. As Maya Angelou said, "When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time."...

Updating your Divorce Agreement Template - More Lessons from Cavanagh v. Cavanagh

We recently posted a lengthy review of the the Massachusetts SJC decision in Cavanagh v. Cavanagh (2002) which included some recommendations for drafting divorce agreements, also typically called Separation Agreements. The Cavanagh case is best known for it's clarification of how the courts should evaluate support calculations when a case may have both alimony and child support. However, the case also contained numerous rulings that should make practitioners review their Separation Agreement templates and change some of the ways in which they may have previously drafted certain sections. In this post we'll share actual language from the Gray Jay Endeavors, LLC form Separation Agreement template which addresses each of the issues raised by the Cavanagh decision. If you are a professional interested in purchasing the full Separation Agreement template, check out Gray Jay's forms subscription which includes editable Massachusetts court forms and financial st...

Co-Parenting Coordinator Agreements - What They Can Do and How to Draft Them

Photo by Marcelo Silva on Unsplash Conflict between parents negatively affects children but for some parents it's hard to avoid conflict when separating or divorcing. Loss, grief, and anger all make it difficult to co-parent and some parents need help overcoming those barriers. One of the professionals that can help parents reduce conflict by assisting them in making the necessary co-parenting decisions is a Co-Parenting Coordinator. The duties of a Co-Parenting Coordinator can vary but often include assisting parents with decision making around: changes or clarifications of the existing parenting plan; exchanges of the child or children including date, time, place, means of and responsibilities for transportation; education or daycare including school choice, tutoring, summer school, before and after school care, participation in special education testing and programs, or other educational decisions; enrichment and extracurricular activities including camps and jobs; the c...

Search This Blog