By Paul Tuthill
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Boston, MA – Governor Deval Patrick has signed into law what attorneys and advocates say is the first major change in Massachusetts family law in 40 years. The law reforms the system for awarding alimony in divorce cases a system nearly everyone agreed was unfair. WAMC's Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief Paul Tuthill reports.
The law sets limits on the number of years a spouse can receive alimony using a formula based on the length of the marriage. This effectively ends what critics of the old system labeled " lifetime alimony". Judges are given discretion to consider family circumstances when awarding alimony, and could order a halt to payments to people who are long term relationships that resemble marriage. Alimony would end at retirement age.
Denise Squillante, the president of the Massachusetts Bar Association said the new law is good public policy
In addition to setting duration limits for traditional alimony, the law establishes so-called transitional alimony intended to help people who need job training to return to the work force. Another category is reimbursement alimony for people who helped pay a spouses way through college , but then divorced.
Rachel Biscardi, a family attorney and member of the Women's Bar Association of Massachusetts said people divorcing after a short marriage will now qualify for alimony.
The bill Governor Patrick signed Monday was passed unanimously by the Massachusetts House and Senate.
After earlier attempts at alimony reform failed, a task force was created two years ago . It included legislators, family law attorneys, legal aid lawyers and alimony reform advocates. State Senator Gale Candaras of Wilbraham was the Senate Chair of the task force
It took 14 months for the task force to work through the issues and produce the legislation.
Steve Hitner, a small business owner from eastern Massachusetts began campaigning for alimony reform six years ago when he was unable to get a judge to change an order that he pay 865 dollars per week to his ex wife. Hitner said he paid alimony for 14 years and it ruined him financially.
Hitner started an organization that has 14 hundred members who lobbied state legislators to make changes to the alimony system.
Some attorneys predict the new law will encourage divorcing couples to negotiate a settlement rather than go to court. And, lawyers say the success of the new alimony law will depend on how judges exercise the new discretion they're given.