UPDATE: There is pending legislation for major changes to the alimony statute in Massachusetts. The Alimony Reform Act of 2011 was filed on January 18, 2011 and you can learn more about the Act at MassAlimonyFormula.com or in our recent blog post highlighting the differences between the bill and the current law . Attorney Scott R. Stevenson of Hingham, Massachusetts and Attorney Justin L. Kelsey, Esq. (one of the authors of this blog) created the Stevenson-Kelsey Spousal Support Calculator as a tool to enable family law practitioners to better advise their clients regarding the settlement of divorce cases where a primary issue is the proposed alimony payment from one spouse to the other. There is not currently any “formula” for the calculation of the spousal support obligation (also referred to as “alimony”) that is endorsed by either the Massachusetts Legislature, a consensus of Massachusetts Probate and Family Court Justices, or even a consensus of Massachusetts family law practiti...

It's time for a lighter, more fun blog post. Check out these sites/stories which we hope will add a little amusement to your day: Husband who tries to avoid divorce proceedings by claiming the marriage ended when he died. Yes you read that correctly. Canadians are trying to kill us with health care reform. Don't worry it's tongue in cheek, and very very funny. Take a virtual tour of the Kelsey & Trask, P.C. offices in Natick. Now you'll know your way around when you come to visit.

One of the first things I explain to clients in our initial one hour divorce consultation is that there are three types of professionals in Massachusetts who can help clients resolve their divorce case: Mediators, Lawyers trained in Collaborative Law, and traditional Litigators. Each of these methods has strengths and weaknesses, and they can be demonstrated by showing you how some well known couples might have experienced these various options: Couple #1 - The Cleavers. Ward is a businessman and June is a stay-at-home mom. They have two children Wally and Beaver. Ward handles all of the finances and June handles most of the home care including parenting, although once in a while Ward is needed to help discipline the children (in a very stern but fair kind of way). Couple #2 - The Huxtables. Cliff is a doctor and Claire is a lawyer. They have five children. They both share in parenting and managing the finances. Cliff's office is located in the home. Couple #3 - The H...

I was recently directed to two articles involving Husbands, one in Germany , and another in Cambodia , that, as part of their divorce, took their half of their marital homes, literally. Not by selling and getting their share of the equity, and not by buying their Wife out of her share, they literally cut the house in half. Don't get any ideas if you're getting divorced in Massachusetts, though. In Massachusetts the Court is directed by M.G.L. c. 208 § 34 to divide the assets of the parties and award support based on numerous factors including the length of the marriage, health of the parties, age of the parties, income of the parties, opportunity for future acquisition of assets and income, and more. When considering all of these factors, we often discover that an equal division of the assets, i.e. a 50/50 division, is the equitable and fair resolution. However, there are also cases where the totality of the circumstances require an unequal division. You won't find Judge...

Generally, the automatic stay provisions of the bankruptcy code at 11 U.S.C. § 362(a) apply only to the debtor filing for relief from the bankruptcy court. However, in certain circumstances, the fact that a debtor filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy can stop collection action against co-debtors, even if the co-debtors did not file bankruptcy. The “co-debtor stay”, set out at 11 U.S.C. § 1301(a) , is a section of the Bankruptcy Code that prevents collection action on consumer debts against co-debtors of the person filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy for the duration of the bankruptcy case. The co-debtor stay operates to delay collection efforts against individuals close to the debtor who have obligated themselves on debts incurred by and for the benefit of the Chapter 13 debtor. Generally, the co-debtor stay applies with respect to any consumer debt for which another individual is also liable, and it continues until the Chapter 13 case has ended. The obligation of the co-debtor does not ...

Whether or not you can keep your health insurance after the divorce will depend on two factors, one of which is in your control and one of which is not. If you are currently on your spouse's health insurance, then they are required by the Rule 411 Automatic Restraining Order to maintain you on your health insurance during the pendency of the Divorce case. However, at the end of the case when you are divorced your status as an eligible dependent on their plan may change. If your spouse's employer participates in a self-insured plan (usually only the case with very large employers), then the plan is covered by Federal law and not State law, in which case the employer can ignore the Massachusetts' law requiring eligibility of ex-spouses. This means that if your spouse's employer has a self-insured plan then no matter what the Court order states you will likely be terminated from your spouse's health insurance upon the divorce. At that time you will be eligible for C...

Although student loan debt can almost never be discharged trough bankruptcy, a new program which went into effect on July 1, 2009 called Income-Based Repayment (IBR) may provide some relief for those who cannot afford high monthly federal student loan payments. The U.S. Bankruptcy code at 11 U.S.C. 523(a)(8) specifically deems student loan obligations as “nondischargeable debt” (i.e., debt that cannot be discharged through a bankruptcy filing) absent a showing of “undue hardship”, which, as contemplated by the code, is a nearly impossible standard to prove. Fortunately, the IBR program may provide some relief. IBR cannot be used to obtain an outright discharge of student loan debt, but it can help borrowers keep their loan payments affordable with payment caps based on income and family size; often capping IBR loan payments at less than 10 percent of their income household income. IBR will also forgive remaining debt, if any, after 25 years of qualifying payments. IBR is available ...