Babies are expensive. Getting married is expensive. Having a wife is expensive. All of these are considerations to be had when you have support obligations arising out of a first marriage. Many people think that since the payor (the one paying support) has a “new family,” the obligation to the first spouse will cease. This is not the case. In …
Family Law Issues in Agriculture: Spousal Maintenance
Spousal maintenance in some states is formulaic, while others rely on case law. In either scenario, there needs to be a determination of income (not assets). For most involved in farming and ranching or other kinds of agri-business, determining income is anything but straightforward. Typically, a spouse is required to pay for his/her health insurance after the divorce, but if …
Illinois Family Law: Termination of Spousal Support with Cohabitation
In Illinois, spousal maintenance obligations ends either: (1) automatically based on a date specified in the court order; (2) automatically upon remarriage; (3) when the recipient spouse begins cohabitating with a significant other, which requires the payor-spouse to ask the court; (4) automatically upon death unless a life insurance policy is to be paid to the recipient ex-spouse when the …
Illinois Divorce Law: Can My Spouse See My Medical Records?
Medical records are required to be produced if they are relevant for spousal maintenance. If the spouse requesting maintenance is claiming he or she cannot work because of a medical condition, then the other spouse is entitled to the medical records. During the discovery phase of litigation, the parties may request documents that are relevant to the divorce, including spousal …
New York Matrimonial Law: Durational Spousal Maintenance Calculations
In New York State, the income cap for maintenance payor’s income in calculating temporary maintenance and post-divorce maintenance has increased to $184,000.00. Here is how maintenance would be calculated in an example where the incomes are as follows: Payor spouse’s Income: $200,000.00 per year. Payee spouse’s Income: $80,000.00 per year. Based on these figures, the adjusted gross income of the …
Illinois Family Law: Duration of Spousal Maintenance in a Divorce
Once it is established that a spouse will be granted maintenance, the next question is: for how long? There’s not much guess work when it comes to the duration of maintenance because it is calculated under 750 ILCS 504(b-1)(1)(B) by a formula. The length of the marriage is multiplied by: • 20% if the marriage was for 5 years or …
The New Maintenance Rules for Post-Divorce Maintenance
In late September, new maintenance legislation was signed into law in New York. The new bill changes the guidelines for calculating post-divorce maintenance. The law goes into effect January 25, 2016. Similar to the temporary maintenance guidelines, the income cap for post-divorce maintenance is also $175,000. Additionally, the court makes the determination of which formula to use based on which …
Form I-864: Sponsoring Spouse’s Duty to Support
To file for a green card, the U.S. citizen must complete Form I-864, an Affidavit of Support, which is an immigration document requiring the U.S. citizen to maintain his or her foreign national spouse at or above 125% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. Divorce does not nullify this promise of support. This is because the Affidavit of Support “serves the …
Queens Matrimonial/Family Law Seminar for Mental Health Professionals
As noted here, I will be conducting New York Matrimonial & Family Law Seminar for mental health professionals along with Deborah Kaminetzky (@CedarhurstLaw on Twitter) from 9:30am to 11:00am on Tuesday, September 13, 2011 at the Adria Hotel & Conference Center at 221-17 Northern Boulevard, Bayside, NY 11361, telephone (718) 631-5900. The cost of the event will be $30 (or …
Child Support Calculations in New York
As I wrote in yesterday’s post, divorce is something that affects people of every industry– including farmers, ranchers, and agri-businesses. A party does not necessarily have to be going through divorce to be owed child support. In New York, the court calculates (weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly) child support based upon the Child Support Standards Act (“CSSA”). The statutory formula is …