In reaction to the Supreme Court’s decision in Mani v. Mani (which held that non-economic fault was not relevant to alimony except in "egregious circumstances") and the Appellate Division’s decision in Calbi v. Calbi (which did not preclude alimony to a woman who beat and kicked her 14 year old son to death during an alcohol related incident), on April 17, 2009, Governor Corzine signed a bill that did the following:
- It amended the alimony statute to deny alimony to a person convicted of murder, manslaughter, criminal homicide, death by auto, aggravated assault of a similar office in a other jurisdiction if the crime results in the death of a child and is committed after the divorce.
- It eliminated inheritance rights for a surviving parent that abused, abandoned, committed a sexual offense against or negligently endangered the child
- It eliminated under the worker’s compensation statutes recovery by a parent who committed those same acts against their child.
We previously blogged about the tragic Calbi case. To see that post, click here.
The new law takes effect in July 2009.
Though the Appellate panel in Calbi invited the Legislature to amend the law, it will be interesting to see if there will be further legal challenge to these laws, particularly as to the alimony and worker’s compensation aspects, because of the specific purpose of those laws.