History of Savings May Be Considered in Determining Alimony

In the Openshaw opinion, decided March 7, 2024, the Supreme Judicial Court determined for the first time that a judge may consider a divorcing couple’s custom of making regular contributions to their savings in determining the amount of alimony needed to maintain the marital lifestyle.  In that case the parties had a long term marriage with combined post-dissolution income sufficient to allow both parties to maintain the standard of living enjoyed during the marriage.

new alimony calculations based on length of marriage

The Durational Limits of General Term Alimony

In 2011, the Alimony Reform Act was passed to put an end to indefinite awards of alimony. Under the Act, the duration of alimony awards is generally limited to a period of months measured as a percentage of the number of years of the marriage.

So, the updated calculations are:

For a Marriage of 5 years or less:
50% of the number of months of the marriage

Marriages over 5 years and up to 10 years:
60% of the number of months of the marriage Read More