No Double Dip: Beware Alimony and Child Support Payments in Massachusetts

When the Commonwealth of Massachusetts passed the Alimony Reform Act in the first half of 2012 one of the main talking points of act was the duration limitation on alimony awards. However, from my prospective the more influential portion of the Alimony Reform can be found in § 53 of G.L. c. 208. This section, and more specifically subsection (c) prohibits the Court from including "gross income which the court has already considered for setting a child support order" in the calculation of alimony.

What does this mean in practical terms to the Massachusetts divorce client? It means that if you're paying child support, most likely you also won't be paying alimony.  I say "most likely" because the Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines specifically do not apply where the combined gross annual income of the parties exceeds $250,000.00.

For those parties who this exception does not apply to G.L. c. 208 § 53 creates a situation where if you're paying child support, you won't also be obligated to pay alimony. Of course this makes sense. This was not always the way of things though, and there are many people in the Commonwealth who are writing two separate checks to their former spouse for alimony and child support.

In fact, even in cases where it may be appropriate for child support and alimony to be awarded concurrently, the Alimony Reform Act provides limitations. G.L. c. 208 § 53(g) specifies that  "if a court orders alimony concurrent with or subsequent to a child support order, the combined duration of alimony and child support shall not exceed the longer of: (i) the alimony or child support duration available at the time of divorce; or (ii) rehabilitative alimony beginning upon the termination of child support." Once again the intent of the Legislature was obviously to provide limitations to alimony to prevent situations where individuals are paying alimony for a significant period of time after their children have all grown and moved on with their lives.

If this is the case in your situation, you may be entitled to a modification of your alimony obligation. It would be wise to consult a Family Law attorney in the Worcester county area to advise you of your rights and discuss with you the possibility of modifying your existing alimony obligation.

Massachusetts Parental Alienation

Parental alienation is a relatively new concept in the area of Family Law, and as any relatively new concept it is often misunderstood in general practice. One of the main causes of confusion as it relates to the concept of parental alienation is that the definition is scarcely defined in the literature. Parental alienation is, for all intents and purposes, any constellation of behaviors, whether conscious or unconscious, that could evoke a disturbance in the relationship between a child and the targeted parent." See Darnall, Douglas "Parental Alienation: Not in the Best Interest of the Children," 75 N. Dak. L. Rev. 323 (1999).

The risk with parental alienation is that if not addressed, it may rise to the level of parental alienation syndrome, as defined by Dr. Richard Gardner's work "The Parental Alienation Syndrome and the Differentiation Between Fabricated and Genuine Child Sex Abuse." Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) focuses on a child's behavior, and is often visible when a child refuses visits, expresses unjustifiable hatred towards the targeted parent, displays no fear of the court, harbors irrational beliefs shared by the alienating parent, and cannot see any good in the targeted parent.

The Courts, especially in Massachusetts, have yet to deal specifically with the issue of parental alienation or parental alienation syndrome. However, some Courts have dealt with the issue and the action that the Court's take as it relates to parental alienation and PAS is severe. The Supreme Court of New Hampshire has dealt with the issue of parental alienation in, In The Matter of James J. Miller and Janet S. Todd, cited a Vermont case "Across the country, the great weight of authority holds that conduct by one parent that tends to alienate the child's affections from the other is so inimical to the child's welfare as to be grounds for a denial of custody to, or a change of custody from, the parent guilty of such conduct."

The Supreme Court of New Hampshire also cited a decision in a prior New Hampshire case that set forth that "the obstruction by a custodial parent of visitation between a child and the noncustodial parent may, if continuous, constitute behavior so inconsistent with the best interests of the child as to raise a strong possibility that the child will be harmed."

You may believe that there is a potential parental alienation situation occurring in your own divorce/child custody arrangement. The Court's outside of the Commonwealth have provided numerous examples of signs of potential parental alienation, and PAS including "child's grooming and appearance during transfer for parenting time...calculated to provoke contact," repeatedly being denied visitation, not being allowed contact, limiting telephone contact, children are falling behind in schooling and many other examples.

The lack of guidelines provided by the Courts of the Commonwealth relative to parental alienation and/or parental alienation syndrome may be discouraging, but if you feel that you are the victim of parental alienation it is important to take immediate action. The issues of parental alienation can be addressed and rectified, however if not addressed the problem may rise to the level of parental alienation syndrome and then the damage done to your relationship with your children may be beyond repair. If you feel that you may be suffering in a parental alienation situation you should contact a family law attorney immediately.

Note: This article originally appeared at the following: http://www.armyandarmylaw.com/Family-Law/Parental-Alienation.shtml