{"id":915,"date":"2012-10-19T14:10:11","date_gmt":"2012-10-19T14:10:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?p=915"},"modified":"2012-10-15T14:30:04","modified_gmt":"2012-10-15T14:30:04","slug":"proposed-alimony-reform-will-hurt-nj-families","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?p=915","title":{"rendered":"Proposed alimony reform will hurt NJ families"},"content":{"rendered":"

After practicing divorce law for more than a decade in NJ, I fully understand the unique circumstances, expectations, and factors that make up an alimony determination.\u00a0 It is true that the amount of alimony can vary as can the duration in two cases that may appear<\/em> similar at the surface.\u00a0 But be assured, alimony is not a superficial analysis.\u00a0 Seasoned attorneys and committed judges evaluate the specific facts of each case and then apply the factors set forth in N.J.S.A 2A:34-23(b).\u00a0 While not perfect, the statute as presently drafted provides adequate guidance when making alimony determinations.\u00a0 each family going through a divorce is unique and proper application of the factors allows for an individualized approach that leads to a resolution that is appropriate for that given family.\u00a0 No one should want to have some of the most important decisions that will impact their lives for years to come\u00a0made in an assembly line manner.<\/p>\n

There is an increasingly vocal call for alimony “reform”.\u00a0 Make no mistake about it: the proposed reforms are nothing but agenda driven politics designed to improve teh outcomes for the financially advantaged spouse (still usually the husband) and work to the detriment of women and children. I refer you to the excellent piece authored by my friend, Patrick Judge, Esq. which succinctly and accurately details the potential impact of the proposed “reforms”.\u00a0 The piece can be found at http:\/\/blog.nj.com\/njv_guest_blog\/2012\/10\/on_divorce_and_alimony_nj_on_w.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Guideline or formulas have an appeal: easy of application and uniform results. The skilled lawyers I have debated this issue with are almost uniform if their opposition to the proposed reforms.\u00a0 And I agree with them.\u00a0 Guidelines are, frankly, for the lazy and uniformed. Working without guidelines, formulas or the like I have been able to achieve results that my clients have been happy with whether they were the one paying or receiving alimony.<\/p>\n

If better results are desired (and the first inquiry must therefore be who decides what the “best’ result is?) then make sure you retain an experienced and skilled attorney.\u00a0 Support adding more judges to the family court bench.\u00a0 Give the court the time and personnel needed to make these important decisions.\u00a0 Beware of the wolf in sheep’s clothing.\u00a0 Drastic reforms as proposed are not needed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After practicing divorce law for more than a decade in NJ, I fully understand the unique circumstances, expectations, and factors that make up an alimony determination.\u00a0 It is true that the amount of alimony can vary as can the duration … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[28,27],"tags":[40,29,32,47,46],"class_list":["post-915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-durstfirm-news","category-durst-on-divorce","tag-alimony","tag-divorce","tag-durst","tag-nj","tag-reform"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6omM8-eL","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1222,"url":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?p=1222","url_meta":{"origin":915,"position":0},"title":"The debate over NJ alimony reform continues","author":"Sandy Durst","date":"December 2, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"If you have followed this blog, the Facebook page for The Durst Firm, LLC\u00a0or my twitter posts from @divorcelawyernj you know by now that while I recognize some measure of reform may be necessary to the current NJ alimony statute, I strongly oppose the \"reform\" bill A3909.\u00a0 The bill is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Durst Firm News"","block_context":{"text":"Durst Firm News","link":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?cat=28"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1001,"url":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?p=1001","url_meta":{"origin":915,"position":1},"title":"NJ Alimony Reform: My 2 Cents.","author":"Sandy Durst","date":"February 8, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I am a NJ divorce lawyer. I work day in and day out to help individuals and there children through the divorce process.\u00a0 I often get blamed for causing divorce.\u00a0 The collective integrity of my colleagues is constantly under attack.\u00a0 I am accused of making divorce a nasty fight simply\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Durst Firm News"","block_context":{"text":"Durst Firm News","link":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?cat=28"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2861,"url":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?p=2861","url_meta":{"origin":915,"position":2},"title":"Understanding NJ Alimony Law","author":"Sandy Durst","date":"February 28, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Alimony is a major issue in many of the divorce cases we handle? Questions we often get deal with whether alimony is appropriate, how much can alimony be, and how long will alimony be paid? This post is intended to provide a basic overview of NJ alimony law. Alimony, also\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Durst Firm News"","block_context":{"text":"Durst Firm News","link":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?cat=28"},"img":{"alt_text":"dollar-currency-money-us-dollar-47344.jpeg","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thedurstfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/dollar-currency-money-us-dollar-47344-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thedurstfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/dollar-currency-money-us-dollar-47344-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thedurstfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/dollar-currency-money-us-dollar-47344-1.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thedurstfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/dollar-currency-money-us-dollar-47344-1.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thedurstfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/dollar-currency-money-us-dollar-47344-1.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thedurstfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/dollar-currency-money-us-dollar-47344-1.jpeg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":934,"url":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?p=934","url_meta":{"origin":915,"position":3},"title":"Martital Fault can be a factor in alimony determinations","author":"Sandy Durst","date":"October 25, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"In an effort to reduce much of the emotional toll of a divorce, NJ law is generally disinclined to use marital fault as a factor when making alimony determinations.\u00a0 Deciding which party is at fault for the breakdown can be a difficult, time consuming, expensive, and emotionally draining process when\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Durst Firm News"","block_context":{"text":"Durst Firm News","link":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?cat=28"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1133,"url":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?p=1133","url_meta":{"origin":915,"position":4},"title":"Court strives to bring clarity to NJ alimony law","author":"Sandy Durst","date":"August 15, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"NJ has 4 types of alimony: permanent, limited duration, rehabilitative, and reimbursement.\u00a0 The body of case law and the NJ alimony statute have served litigants, attorneys and judges well in crafting equitable resolutions to alimony disputes.\u00a0 However, there are some gray areas in the law.\u00a0 One of those gray areas\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Durst Firm News"","block_context":{"text":"Durst Firm News","link":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?cat=28"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1011,"url":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?p=1011","url_meta":{"origin":915,"position":5},"title":"Divorce and Taxes: What you need to know","author":"Sandy Durst","date":"February 16, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"A divorce will surely impact your tax filing.\u00a0 The following points are based on my 14 years of experience as a NJ divorce attorney.\u00a0 You should consult with an accountant or qualified tax preparer to determine how to best prepare your returns.\u00a0 If you were divorced at any time in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Durst Firm News"","block_context":{"text":"Durst Firm News","link":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/?cat=28"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=915"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/915\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":917,"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/915\/revisions\/917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedurstfirm.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}