Alimony is often a contested issue when couples get divorced. At HD Family Law, we work hard to help individuals reach the alimony agreements they deserve and need. Contact an experienced Bergen County, New Jersey alimony lawyer today from HD Family Law to learn more about your options.
Alimony Lawyer Located in Bergen County, New Jersey | Serving NY & NJ
Spousal support, also known as maintenance in New York and alimony in New Jersey, can be a great help to maintain your quality of life after a divorce. There are many factors that go into making spousal support determinations and ultimately, the court decides on a case-by-case basis. It is important that you have effective advocacy presenting relevant evidence on your behalf. Our Hackensack, New Jersey divorce lawyer is ready to fight for you.
Alimony in New Jersey
The law is extremely vague on how to resolve issues of spousal support in New Jersey. An alimony calculator does not exist in New Jersey. When it comes to child support, there’s a mathematical formula that provides a specific minimum amount a party should pay to support their children. And the formula is based on the income of both parties, as well as other numerical inputs, including, but not limited to, the number of overnights each parent has with the child and the amount paid for healthcare coverage.
But there is no such formula for calculating alimony in NJ. Case law and statute provide certain factors to be considered in making the determination.
The New Jersey factors may include, but are not limited to:
- Both spouses’ income
- The actual need and ability of the parties to pay
- The duration of the marriage
- The age & health of both parties
- The standard of living established in the marriage
- Both spouses’ earning capacities
- Parental responsibilities
- History of financial & non-financial contributions to the marriage
- The equitable distribution of property
- Tax consequences
- Any other factor the court deems relevant
Even with these factors, there is little guidance on how to resolve this topic. This is precisely the reason why the amount of alimony is one of the most contested and litigated issues during divorce, leaving counsel and clients to negotiate endlessly. Without bright-line legal rules, the back and forth positioning of the spouses only adds more fuel to the already raging fire of emotions and demands. This is precisely why you must seek the skills and expertise of an experienced Bergen County, New Jersey alimony lawyer.
The lack of guidance doesn’t stop there. There are also no legal rules or statutes for determining how many years you need to be married to get alimony in NJ or for how many years you are entitled to receive alimony payments.
You and your spouse will just have to keep negotiating until you either come up with agreed-upon terms or a judge does for you.
How is Spousal Support Calculated in New York?
There are new and complex formulas for determining maintenance in New York. Whether you are seeking temporary or more permanent maintenance, judges also look at a variety of factors to decide whether alimony is appropriate and how much is necessary.
The court will decide on payments based on any of the following issues:
- Present and future job prospects and earnings
- The standard of living the spouses have become accustomed to during the marriage
- The length of the marriage
- The age and health needs of each spouse
- If raising children caused one spouse to impede earning or potential job opportunities
- How much each spouse receives under New York’s equitable distribution rules
How Long Can I Receive Maintenance in New York?
Temporary maintenance payments stop when the divorce enters final judgment. This can help you during the process as well as assist you with transitioning back to single life. Permanent alimony payments, on the other hand, end at a specific date agreed upon in the divorce order, when the spouse receiving payments remarries, or when either spouse dies.
Alimony can also be modified or terminated, such as when a spouse gets a better paying job, if a spouse loses their job, or if there are other severe financial issues that need to be addressed.
Why Hiring HD Family Law is Necessary for Your Financial Future
Using our extensive legal expertise and knowledge combined with the financial experts we directly work with, our experienced Bergen County, New Jersey alimony lawyer can help you apply the factors to the specific facts and circumstances of your situation and come up with a strategy and focused approach to achieve the most beneficial outcome on your behalf.
We will be your voice and proceed with the negotiation process on your behalf. However, we never lose sight of our client’s goals and make sure to discuss every step of the negotiation process with you. New Jersey requires that each client complete a Case Information Statement, which is arguably the most important document you will submit to the Court and Counsel during your divorce matter. Some attorneys simply send the document to their clients and ask them to fill it out. We work together with our client to ensure that the document reflects all of our client’s financial information, expenses, assets, and debts in as much detail as possible. This not only allows the court a greater understanding of our client’s needs but also allows us to create a comprehensive budget for our client so the client is well informed of how much they can spend during the divorce and their financial needs moving forward.
Contact an Experienced Alimony Lawyer Today
With so many years of experience, we will not only strive to negotiate the amount and duration of alimony you find fair, but most importantly the amount and duration of alimony you need to support yourself and your children, if any, moving forward. Many complain that divorce ruined them financially, but at HD Family Law, our goal is to secure your financial future and independence long after your divorce. Whether you are seeking temporary maintenance in New York or alimony in New Jersey call HD Family Law at 866.937.9990 or contact us online to schedule a consultation.
