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Have you recently been laid-off from work or received a drastic decline in salary? Are you having trouble meeting your child support or alimony payments due to the substantial and permanent change in your financial circumstances? Do you feel as if there is no place to turn?
There is no need to stress about your financial worries when you can file an application to decrease support with the Court. Although the Court system is there to review your case, there is a two-step process you must first complete before a Court will entertain any downward modification in support.
First, you must submit an application disclosing your dire financial position. The application should be complete with documentation and financial information to aid the Court in analyzing your financial circumstances. The Court can only grant your application if you successfully show a prima facie case for modification. The Court must be satisfied that you fulfilled the first step by successfully illustrating an involuntary change in circumstance that has permanently and substantially impaired your ability to fulfill your financial support obligations. In the event you are unable to meet this criteria, your application will be denied. Consequently, it is important to utilize the services of an attorney who understands and is familiar with the legal criteria needed to help you proceed to level two.
After the Court finds you have established a prima facie case for modification, the next, and final step, is scheduling a final hearing to determine the extent of your financial circumstances. Prior to advancing to the final hearing however, many Courts will first require that you exchange discovery, such as Notice to Produce Documents and Request for Interrogatories, with the opposing party. You may need to submit to oral Depositions. The Court may also require that you participate in alternative dispute resolutions, such as mediation or attend an Early Settlement Panel to help settle the matter without further use of the Court’s resources. In the event you are unable to settle your matter, after witness testimony and the presentation of evidence, the Court will evaluate your matter to determine the extent of the change in your financial circumstances.
Contact an attorney at Iandoli & Edens, LLC to learn more. We are experienced attorneys equipped with the proficiency you will need to get you through a change in circumstance application. Do not delay any longer. Call today. 908.879.9499.
Employability Experts:
What to expect when one party is unemployed or underemployed
New Jersey law requires the Court to evaluate each party’s earning abilities to determine the proper income to impute for alimony and child support purposes. Income issues often arise if one parent is a stay at home parent or if a party is underemployed, refusing to earn a living commensurate with his or her capabilities. In the event someone is not working, the Court can impute income to that party. Of course, the cost of childcare is offset to replace the care provided by the stay at home parent if that is the case.
Hiring an employability expert is an effective method utilized to assess the unemployed party’s income capabilities. Reputable experts will meet with the subject to obtain information about his or her past employment history. Some experts may also ask the party to complete performance tests. The expert may research trends in connection with job availability and wages for a particular field. Once the expert completes his research, he will render a report complete with his findings.
It is important to note that a major drawback with hiring an employability expert is that there is no guarantee a Court will accept the expert’s findings. Refrain from mistakenly regarding the expert’s result as a stipulated fact between the parties or that the Court will take judicial notice of the results. Indeed, the employability report is only one factor, or suggestion, of many the Court may (or may not) consider.
Despite the drawbacks, there are many benefits to hiring an employability expert and you have the right to seek the assistance of said expert if you preserve that right. Contact an attorney at Iandoli & Edens, LLC for more information. 908.879.9499.
Join us for our Economic Consideration in Divorce Seminar!
This seminar will also include topics regarding Alimony, Child Support, and Equitable Distribution.
Where: Morris Hills School of Adult & Continuing Education
Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Time: From 7pm until 9pm
Register Information: Morris Hills School of Adult & Continuing Education at (973)-664-2295
We hope to see you there!
In New Jersey, as in many other states, marital fault is not considered by the courts when making financial awards, either alimony or equitable distribution. In other words, even though your spouse may have cheated on you or otherwise acted inappropriately during the marriage, you will not be able to receive additional marital compensation based on that fact alone. The only exception is what is called a Tevis claim where a spouse can ask for monetary damages for physical or emotional abuse. These claims are treated as a personal injury claim by the court.
To overcome this, many couples are building these claims into their prenuptial agreements, asking for specific monetary relief if their spouse commits a certain act. For example, reportedly, pursuant to Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen’s prenuptial, either party would receive $4,000,000 if the other committed adultery.
A prenuptial can also be quite a bit more one sided. It is reported that according to Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones’ prenuptial, Catherine would receive $5,000,000 should Michael Douglas cheat on her.
Although it appears most common that married people feel they should be financially compensated for infidelity, prenuptial agreements can address other types of marital fault as well. It is written that Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban’s prenuptial states that if Keith does any illicit drugs, he will forfeit the other provisions in the prenuptial that provide for him financially should they divorce.
To talk to an attorney experienced in preparing prenuptial agreements, contact one of the lawyers at Iandoli & Edens at (908) 879-9499.
There are special tax issues which pertain to couples who are seeking a separation or divorce. The first issue is whether to file jointly or separately. If filing separately, the question becomes who gets to claim the children, the deductions for the home mortgage interest, real estate property taxes, market losses, etc. If seeking a final divorce, the issue becomes who will claim those deductions. Additionally, while you are negotiating alimony, keep in mind that alimony is usually taxable income to the person who receives it and a deduction for the person who pays it. If you are addressing any of these issues, be sure to contact a knowledgeable attorney who can assist you with these issues. Contact Iandoli & Edens, LLC at (908) 879-9499.
When is an agreement reached? Can an agreement be reached before the Marital Settlement Agreement is signed by both parties? Are verbal agreements binding (i.e. legally enforceable) when they arise during conversations at home, during conferences with attorneys, or at mediation?
What if one party believes that an issue or the entire case is settled and the other party denies that an agreement exists? Then what? Evidence of an agreement would certainly be helpful to your position.
If you or someone you know is in this type of situation, it is very likely that you have heard the term “Harrington Hearing”. Typically, the spouse whose position it is that a settlement agreement exists will likely seek relief from the court in the form of a Harrington Hearing. A Harrington Hearing is a court hearing consisting of any and all testimony and evidence relevant to whether an agreement exists.
There are ways to avoid a dispute over whether an agreement exists. As a practical matter, the best evidence is when the terms of a settlement are typed or written onto a document that bears both parties’ signatures. Many times, attorneys put settlement terms on the record when an agreement is reached at court. In addition, most mediators advise their clients that settlement is not final until the parties have agreed to the terms outlined in the Mediator’s Memorandum of Understanding.
A family law attorney can be extremely helpful in these types of situations because he/she will know when and what to put on paper. Is it wise for you to piecemeal your settlement or only settle your case from a global perspective? Our firm can help. Call us at (908) 879-9499 to schedule a consultation.
Whether you are paying alimony or receiving alimony, or about to pay alimony or about to receive alimony, a recent case may be applicable to your situation.
Typically alimony is based on the standard of living enjoying during the marriage. You would assume that it is also based on the earnings during the marriage. However, that’s not necessarily the way it will work. A recent case made it clear that under certain circumstances a court can consider the earning capacities of the parties that include earnings beyond that earned during the marriage. The court said it can look at a principle called the “momentum of the marriage” to determine if that caused the higher future earnings. If so, and all the other criteria relevant to the case are satisfied, a payor spouse’s current earnings, even if higher than those earned during the marriage, can be used to determine the amount of alimony to be paid.
Should you have any questions about alimony, do not hesitate to contact one of the attorneys at Iandoli & Edens at (908) 879‑9499.
How much alimony will I have to pay?
How much alimony will I receive?
If you have a case involving alimony, both the party paying and the party receiving the alimony want and need to know what that amount will be. Unfortunately, there is no simple answer. There is no statute, case law or court rule which gives a specific dollar amount or percentage amount. To the contrary, the courts have indicated for years and recently reaffirmed that there is no formula. There is a statute that governs alimony in New Jersey. The statute lists 13 factors. The 13th factor is anything that the court deems relevant to your case.
If you are contemplating a divorce, you will want to know whether or not alimony will be involved and, if so, how much. Contact Iandoli & Edens at (908) 879‑9499 for an appointment with a knowledgeable attorney who will have a frank discussion with you regarding this issue.
Please join us on November 15, 2011 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the County College of Morris, Randolph Campus for our workshop regarding Child Support and Post-Matrimonial Relief – What to Do If Support Does Not Come Through or If Circumstances Change.
To register for this FREE workshop, please call (973) 328-5025, or e-mail womenscenter@ccm.edu.
Please join us on November 15, 2011 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the County College of Morris, Randolph Campus for our workshop entitled “Post-Matrimonial Relief – What to Do If Support Does Not Come Through or If Circumstances Change.”
To register for this FREE workshop, please call (973) 328-5025, or e-mail womenscenter@ccm.edu.
