Alimony Reduction Blues?

Can I get an Alimony Reduction?

I have practiced divorce and family law for over 20 years. Every year I deal with multiple alimony reduction cases. In this article I will explain how to get an alimony reduction.

Reduce Alimony

Court Orders establish alimony. That Court Order entered after the hearing or decision by a Judge. Or, that alimony Order was the result of an agreement between the parties. Alimony can be increased. Reductions in alimony can also be agreed upon or Ordered by a Judge.

Alimony is established based upon a number of factors. The key factors in analyzing alimony are the length of the marriage, the incomes and expenses and the marital lifestyle. Multiple lesser factors go into the determination of alimony. These are the biggest and most important.

Non-Modifiable Alimony Reduction?

By agreement between the parties alimony can be non-modifiable. This means that even if the financial circumstances of the alimony payor changed drastically, alimony cannot be modified. Courts have discretion in non-modifiable alimony to craft ways for the alimony to be paid. For example, a Court can Order that assets be distributed to pay the alimony. Additionally, Courts have the power to extend the term of alimony in Order to ensure the bargained for amount is paid in full.

For example, alimony is $1000 per week for 10 years. The Court finds that the pay or does not have the ability to pay because of a legitimate change in circumstances, the Court can lower the weekly amount and extend the term so that the recipient gets all of the bargained for alimony.

Alimony Changed Circumstances

What qualifies as a change in circumstances? Remember the main factors for calculating alimony – income and expenses and marital lifestyle. When the circumstances of the payor change so drastically that the income cannot maintain anything close to the marital lifestyle, the Court is empowered to review the parties circumstances and share the pain.

Is it easy to get an Alimony Reduction in Court?

No way. Once alimony is established by agreement or Court Order, the Court never wants to see you back again.

How do you prove a change in circumstances to get an alimony reduction?

Honest and thorough financial disclosure.
Prove the impact on ability to meet the marital lifestyle.
Demonstrable evidence that the payor cannot meet expenses from current income or assets.
Offer a compelling narrative that the change in circumstances is involuntary.
Evidence that the recipient’s circumstances have changed for the better.
Any agreement between the parties regarding alimony modification.

What to expect when you seek an alimony reduction.

You should expect it to be hell. Alimony is never enough for your ex. There will be titanic resistance to a reduction. Any financial missteps that occurred during the marriage will be brought up. Anytime you paid your support slowly will be brought up. Bad stuff that occurred during your marriage will be highlighted. You will feel like you are getting divorced again. Family and divorce cases are tough enough the first time, no one wants to go through their family and divorce case a second time. That is what an alimony reduction process feels like.

Your ex spouse and legal counsel will generally fight to the death.You will be accused of manufacturing the changed circumstances. The Adversary will argue that you created your lower income. You will be accused of manufacturing the income evidence altogether.

How do the Judges look upon alimony modification?

Judges look at litigants seeking alimony reduction with great scrutiny. I do not want to say they believe everybody seeking a reduction is a liar, but I urge you to think back on the time you got called to the principal’s office. It is like that. You are assumed to be guilty of at least fudging the facts and fudging the numbers. If your initial application is incomplete or if the Judge feels it is a close call, you will lose.

What to gather for success in your alimony modification motion.

Start with the baseline documents. You must show the documents that were utilized to determine the initial alimony. Financial disclosures, tax returns, pay stubs, business tax returns statements of assets and debt.
You will need your divorce documents – judgment of divorce or decree of divorce and any agreements or other Court Orders that were part of that final divorce.
Submit any Court Orders that are entered after the initial divorce.
You must explain what has occurred since the last time the Court addressed alimony. A compelling narrative tells the story about how you as the payor have done everything in your power to pay your support. The story must be clear. Your financial hardship is not your voluntary doing.
Explain how the change in circumstances leading to alimony modification is permanent in nature.
You must make a diligent effort to replace your income and document your search process.

For example, after a (25) year career as a manager of a car dealership earning $350,000 per year plus a loaner car Lenny was let go. Lenny will wonder if he will ever get the top job again. Is he over the hill or past his prime?It may take a while for Lenny to find a comparable position. No Court and no ex will accept that Lenny is done. There are lots of car dealerships all over the place. He may not get the $350,000 per year job but you can get a job as a car dealership manager. Lenny cannot come to Court and say “Court I can never get another job as a car dealership manager, put me at minimum wage and get rid of my alimony.”

What can Lenny do?

Hire a recruiter. Put an application on every online job board and service. Document every place he placed the resume. Every outreach on Linkedin. Save everypost on Indeed Indeed: Job Search or zip recruiter ZipRecruiter: Job Search – Millions of Jobs Hiring Near You for any job search as website.Job Searching on LinkedIn – Overview Likewise, Lenny must track outreach on social media.

Make a File for:

…every response you get from the job seeking outreach. Retain all rejection and interview emails. Every outreach must turn into a document. That is how you demonstrate a diligent effort to replace your job and income.

Should I take a lower paying job?

After a diligent search you find you can only get a job making 65% of your prior compensation. You worry. If I take this job and my alimony is not reduced I am totally screwed.

The alternative is you reject a good job and the Court criticizes you for failing to find a job earning comparable to your prior compensation. The combination of alimony reduction andjobseeking is emotionally draining. If in doubt, take a job in your field making somewhat less money.

Why take a job making less money?

Presenting the Court with actual job offer and pay stubs takes away the guesswork. Maybe the Court would have reduced your income by 20% and reduced your alimony accordingly. By showing that you made a diligent search and the best offer you got was 65% of your prior compensation, the Court will have a really hard time imputing additional income to you.

Should I run into Court on the day I lose my job?

It is better to wait a few months. Gather all the necessary financial documents. Demonstrate that you have made a diligent search for a new job. Then file in Court with a winning application. It is much worse to lose an alimony modification case than it is to wait another month. The extra month will hurt in the short run. However, getting a permanent reduction will save you legitimate long-term money.

What else should I worry about?

If you have loads of liquid assets the Court may look to your liquid assets to supplement alimony payments – ouch.
You have recently purchased an expensive non-income producing asset such as a second home. Beware, the Court may look to the value of that home as something that you could have used to pay your support. – Ugh!
The Court may require you to share ongoing income updates with your spouse.

No one wants to share income information with an ex-spouse.

This is primarily an emotional issue. That is, unless your income more or less stays the same or goes down. Then you should be only too happy to share it. If your income goes up, alimony goes up.

In summary, make your alimony reduction application about mathematics and money. Your ex will want to make it about emotions and misdirection. Judges like facts and law – focus on both to win a fair alimony reduction.

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