The Massachusetts Bar Association has produced a video to highlight the results of underfunding of the Probate Courts. In this video Judges, professors and court officers discuss the difficulties in administering justice when the resources they had depended on are no longer there. It is clear from these interviews that hearings and decisions are going to be seriously delayed. As the Massachusetts Probate Court becomes more clogged, and filings, hearings and decisions are delayed even longer, the case for divorce mediation becomes even stronger. If the family courts are seen as at a crisis point – longer delays, cutbacks on numbers of cases being heard- people seeking child support, divorces and modifications are confronted with substantially longer wait times. One judge points out that couples may be married for longer than they wish because of the delays. Judges are encouraging those who can, to mediate. Mediation can be extremely beneficial for those couples who wish to maintain their privacy and to have control over the timing of their divorce proceedings.
Mediation Articles
Massachusetts Council of Family Mediation Annual Conference
A divorcing couple can work with a neutral mediator and take control of the process in a more timely manner than going through the court system.
I recently attended the Massachusetts Council of Family Mediation’s Annual conference and was able to hear news from the Probate Court by Keynote Speaker Paula Carey, Chief Justice of the Probate and Family Court. Her comments about the Probate Court system, while very positive in general, highlighted areas of major cutbacks due to budget constraints. Of major importance is that over the next year the court will lose 10 Probate Court Judges. There is no guarantee that these positions will be replaced or when. Over the past 5 years, the number of law clerks used by the Judges of the Probate and Family Court has gone from 24 to 4.5 currently. Lawyers and litigants will have to wait even longer for Judges to render decisions or even to have hearings scheduled. With the numerous potential modifications that will be filed under the new Alimony Reform Act of 2011, the case- load is only continuing to grow. It is clear that there is a significant benefit to couples and families who have the opportunity to privately and amicably decide parenting arrangements for their children and how to divide their property. With the help of a neutral mediator, a couple can take control of the process and retain the ability to move forward in their lives in a much more timely manner than would be available through the court system. ~ Attorney Mediator Tracy Fischer [Read more...]
New Massachusetts Alimony Law
October 2011 – read the entire Alimony Reform Act (PDF)
The Massachusetts Alimony Reform Act of 2011 was just passed into law amending Massachusetts General Law chapter 208 section 34, adding section 48, clarifying the nature and duration of alimony. The law will become effective in March of 2012
First, four different categories of alimony are identified and defined: General term alimony is simply a periodic payment of support to one spouse to another. Rehabilitative, Reimbursement and Transitional alimony are all defined as periodic or one time payments, considered after a marriage of five years or less. They are all seen as a means to an end and for the particular purpose of enabling a spouse a short period of time to become independent. [Read more...]
Massachusetts Post-Nuptial Agreements
The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts found that post-nuptial agreements entered into under specific conditions would be enforceable. Post-nuptial agreements are made by couples contemplating divorce but still trying to work on their marriage and not yet ready to commit to divorce. They are able, through this type of agreement, to decide how their assets will be divided, make financial arrangements for support, and how their children will be cared for in the event of a divorce in the future. This agreement would then allow couples to feel secure in whatever the outcome of a divorce would be and allowing the couple the opportunity to put their emotional efforts into strengthening their marriage.
Post-nuptial agreements have been fairly uncommon in Massachusetts because the law has been unsettled as to whether or not the agreement would be enforceable at the time of divorce. Now that the Supreme Judicial Court has found that post-nuptial agreements are enforceable, mediation becomes an appropriate and effective process for couples to work out the terms of their post-nuptial agreement. [Read more...]
Changes in Massachusetts Alimony Rulings
What This Means For You
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has made a controversial ruling recently regarding alimony payments. They decided that alimony payments do not automatically end when the paying spouse reaches the age of retirement.
In the recent case the spouse who had been paying alimony, voluntarily retired at the age of 65 and requested to be relieved of his alimony payments. The ex couple’s divorce agreement did not specify that alimony would end at retirement, rather upon the death of either or remarriage. The Supreme Judicial Court ordered that he continue paying alimony to his ex spouse because she had lost her job, concluding that retirement is only one factor in several when it comes to rulings on alimony modifications.
You may be wondering what this means for you. In terms of mediation, it gives divorcing couples additional knowledge to use in the discussion of appropriate alimony provisions for your particular situation. An understanding of what the courts are doing now will aid in the construction of mediated agreements so both parties can address these particular issues before they arise. [Read more...]
