Wife's Increased Income Reduces Husband's Alimony Obligations
by
Joseph C. Maya on Apr. 17, 2017
Divorce & Family Law Divorce & Family Law Family Law
Summary: Blog post about a post-divorce case where an ex-husband's alimony payments were reduced because of the increase in income of the ex-wife.
If you have questions about divorce, legal separation, alimony pendente lite, or alimony in Connecticut, please feel free to call the experienced divorce attorneys at Maya Murphy, P.C. in Westport today at 203-221-3100 or email Joseph C. Maya, Esq. at JMaya@Mayalaw.com.
In the case of Sobolowski v. Sobolowski, a divorced wife moved to hold her former husband in contempt for failure to make alimony payments and to provide her with evidence of life insurance, and for attorney fees in connection with her motions.
The parties more-than-25-year marriage ended in 1995. The husband was to make alimony payments of $ 37,500 per year in $ 3,150 monthly installments for a period of 12.5 years. The order was modifiable upon one of a number of conditions specified in the judgment. The husband claimed that at least one of the events has occurred, his earning less than $ 90,000 in a year. The husband had been further ordered to maintain a $ 350,000 life insurance policy naming the wife as irrevocable beneficiary as long as he continued to have an obligation to pay alimony. The judgment was silent as to what effect a modification of alimony would have on the life insurance order. The parties' agreement, approved by court order before hearing, "suspended" alimony payments until the hearing if the husband dropped his demand to change life insurance coverage. The court found two of the "events." The husband's income had dropped below $ 90,000 in 2003, and the wife's income exceeded the husband's income. Accordingly the court modified the alimony to $ 2,520 per month effective January 1, 2004. The agreement did not "reduce" the husband's alimony.
The court ordered the alimony modified to $ 2,520 per month, the husband to pay the monthly "suspended" alimony arrearage ($ 3,150 per month less the 42 percent of his income that he had been paying under the agreement) at the rate of $ 1,000 per month until caught up, and found the husband to be in non-willful contempt, so it did not penalize him or make him pay attorney fees.
For a free consultation, please do not hesitate to call the experienced family law and divorce attorneys at Maya Murphy, P.C. in Westport, CT at 203-221-3100. We may also be reached for inquiries by email at JMaya@mayalaw.com.
Source: Sobolowski v. Sobolowski, 2004 Conn. Super. LEXIS 2163, 2004 WL 1966907 (Conn. Super. Ct. Aug. 10, 2004)
