Source: http://divorcelawyerma.com/case-law/green-v-green.php
Timestamp: 2019-04-26 12:44:12+00:00

Document:
Present: BERRY, WOLOHOJIAN & SULLIVAN, JJ.
The wife appeals from a judgment of divorce nisi, arguing essentially that the financial division is inequitable. We conclude that the judge acted within her discretion in dividing the assets evenly and awarding the wife alimony of $875 per week until the husband retires from teaching.
The wife appeals from a judgment of divorce nisi, arguing essentially that the financial division is inequitable. We conclude that the judge acted within her discretion in dividing the assets evenly and awarding the wife alimony of $875 per week until the husband retires from teaching. However, we also conclude that the record does not contain sufficient information about the value of the husband's teaching pension to support the financial award for the period after the husband retires from teaching. We therefore affirm in part but remand for further proceedings on the question of postretirement support for the wife.
Discussion. While equitable division of property continues to be governed by G.L. c. 208, � 34, we note that the Alimony Reform Act (Act) took effect shortly before this case was tried. In making an award of alimony, a judge must now operate within the Act's framework. See G.L. c. 208, � 34, as amended by St.2011, c. 124, �� 1-2; G.L. c. 208, �� 48-55, inserted by St.2011, c. 124, � 3. Similar to prior law, the Act defines alimony as "the payment of support from a spouse, who has the ability to pay, to a spouse in need of support for a reasonable length of time." [Note 7] G.L. c. 208, � 48. Cf. Gottsegen v. Gottsegen, 397 Mass. 617 , 623-624 (1986) (prior statutory authority to award alimony was "grounded in the recipient spouse's need for support and the supporting spouse's ability to pay"). The Act directs judges to consider a nonexclusive list of factors to determine the form, amount, and duration of alimony, see G.L. c. 208, � 53( a ), [Note 8] and sets presumptive limits on duration and amount. [Note 9] With regard to general term alimony, the Act permits judges to deviate from the presumptive limits on duration, and to deviate where necessary from the presumptive limits on amount. See, e.g., G.L. c. 208, �� 49( b ), 49( f )(1), and 53( e ). The recent amendments also recognize the interrelationship between alimony and property division, see D.L. v. .L., 61 Mass. App. Ct. 488 , 508 (2004), by expressly incorporating "the amount and duration of alimony, if any, awarded" into the list of factors judges must consider when dividing property. See G.L. c. 208, � 34, third sentence.
Here, the wife challenges the overall financial division, arguing that both the allocation of assets and the alimony award are insufficient. Because the Act does not depart from the long-standing principle that alimony and property division "are interrelated remedies that cannot be viewed apart," D.L. v. G.L., 61 Mass.App.Ct. at 508, on review we assess the fairness of the "financial arrangement as a whole." Grubert v. Grubert, 20 Mass. App. Ct. 811 , 822 (1985). The parties, in their briefs, have argued first (and implicitly request that we review first), the division of assets. We turn to that question.
With regard to alimony, the judge awarded the wife $875 per week in general term alimony until, among other events, the husband retires from teaching. By subtracting discretionary home maintenance costs of $472 per week from the wife's reported expenses, the judge found that the wife's fixed weekly expenses are $705.93, and we cannot say that that finding was "clearly erroneous ." See Sampson v. Sampson, 62 Mass. App. Ct. 366 , 370 (2004). When the alimony is combined with the wife's Social Security payments, her weekly income stream is nearly $1,100, which, as the judge explained, "more than meets the fixed needs of Wife" and allows for some discretionary spending and anticipated home improvements.
Furthermore, to the extent that G.L. c. 208, � 49( f ) (creating a presumption that alimony shall terminate when the payor reaches full retirement age [as the husband has] ) has application in this case, [Note 11] the judge here implicitly found that there was good cause to deviate from that presumption, see G.L. c. 208, � 49( f )(1), and her factual findings show that she considered the relevant statutory grounds for deviation, including the wife's age, poor health, and lack of employment opportunity. [Note 12] See G.L. c. 208, � 53( e ). We conclude that the judge acted well within her discretion in awarding alimony to the wife even though the husband had already reached full retirement age, and we see no error in the amount of alimony awarded for the period until the husband's retirement.
[Note 1] The husband was still teaching at the time of trial, even though he was past full retirement age, see 42 U.S.C. � 416(l)(1)(C), and earning $1,367.59 per week. He was also receiving $519.46 per week in Social Security income and $1,008.78 per week from his engineering pension.
[Note 2] The wife's only independent source of income is a weekly Social Security payment of $194.84.
[Note 3] Whereas the husband had proposed an equal division of marital assets, the wife sought sixty-five percent of the assets based on the husband's allegedly poor behavior during the marriage. The judge rejected the wife's request for a disproportionate allocation of assets, explaining that "[e]ach party exhibited certain conduct during ... the marriage which contributed to [its] eventual breakdown."
[Note 5] Typically, pensions are treated as assets subject to equitable division. See Casey v. Casey, 79 Mass. App. Ct. 623 , 629-630 (2011).
[Note 6] The judge made no findings about the value of the teaching pension, and both parties acknowledged at oral argument that the record is silent on that point.
[Note 7] The Act also defines four different forms of alimony. See G.L. c. 208, � 48 (defining general term alimony, rehabilitative alimony, reimbursement alimony, and transitional alimony). Here, the husband acknowledged that general term alimony was appropriate because of the length of the marriage and disparity of income.
[Note 8] The new alimony factors in G.L. c. 208, � 53( a ), largely overlap with the property division factors in G.L. c. 208, � 34.
[Note 9] See, e.g., G.L. c. 208, � 49( b ) (setting presumptive limits on duration of general term alimony based on length of marriage); G.L. c. 208, � 53( b ) (providing that alimony generally should not exceed recipient's need or thirty to thirty-five percent of difference between parties' gross incomes).
[Note 10] The wife also argues that provisions in the judgment relating to life insurance, medical coverage, personal property, and preparation of the qualified domestic relations order were error, but we cannot say that those provisions create a "plainly wrong and excessive" financial division. Heins v. Ledis, 422 Mass. 477 , 481 (1996).
[Note 11] The judge found, and the record supports, that the husband agreed and acknowledged that he has an obligation to pay alimony as long as he remains in his current position.
[Note 12] Although the judge did not enter written findings of her reasons for deviating - as required by G.L. c. 208, �� 49( f )(1) and 53( e ) - the parties have waived any argument that this was error. See Correia v. Correia, 70 Mass. App. Ct. 811 , 816 (2007) (issues not raised below are generally deemed waived on appeal).
[Note 13] In addition to challenging the financial division, the wife also argues that the judge should have awarded her attorney's fees because the husband has a greater ability to pay. "A judge has considerable discretion in determining the necessity and the amount of attorney's fees." Moriarty v. Stone, 41 Mass. App. Ct. 151 , 159 (1996). We discern no abuse of discretion here. Cf. Drapek v.. Drapek, 399 Mass. 240 , 248 (1987) (judge acted within discretion in declining to award wife attorney's fees).
[Note 14] The husband's request for appellate attorney's fees and costs is denied.

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