The newly unreported (does not set precedent) decision of Covone v. Curreri makes two bold moves: (1) asserting that the passage of time is not a change in circumstance warranting a modification to child support and (2) confirming that the trial court has authority to allocate expenses between parents even without proof of their financial
A Reminder: No change of circumstances? No best interests of the child finding? No change of custody or parenting time..
Last summer, Eliana Baer and Eric Solotoff of our Family Law Department achieved an Appellate Division victory when a trial court’s decision to allow our client’s ex-husband to obtain a custody evaluation without the requisite finding that there had been a change of circumstances. In that case, the Appellate Division took issue with the trial
Alienating Your Kids from Their Other Parent May Cost Your Kids Big When it Comes to Child Support and College.
Here in New Jersey, divorced parents are generally obligated to contribute to the college education expenses for their un-emancipated children. In virtually every marital settlement agreement where there are un-emancipated children (the agreement the parties to a divorce enter into in resolution of all of their financial and/or parenting time issues), there is some sort
The Right Way to Get an Above-The-Guidelines Child Support Award, Counsel Fees and Argue for Imputation
The new unpublished case of Nabbie v. O’Connor is a good review of above-the-guidelines child support, income imputation and counsel fees. Child support guidelines are only applicable for the total support award when parents earn combined net income of $187,200 per year. What happens to the remainder of support? It’s reviewed based upon the child’s
As if it Wasn’t Clear the First Time, The Appellate Division Rules On the Impact of a Social Security Administration Disability Determination on Support- Again
In a recent published (precedential) decision, Gormley v. Gormley, the Appellate Division cleared up confusion between two prior cases that dealt with the impact of a determination of disability by the Social Security Administration upon support.
In Gormley, the parties were divorcing. The Wife in this matter had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis
How the Economic Downturn and Financial Impact of Coronavirus Could Be Felt in 2021 and Beyond
An all too familiar, if not overused, term to describe all thing Covid 19/Corona virus is “unprecedented.” In an attempt to avoid politics, whether any of this was foreseeable or not, there is no dispute of the absolute financial devastation that the world wide pandemic as created. The stock market has cratered, many people are
When Dividing Deferred Compensation – Say What You Mean and Mean What You Say – To Avoid Future Litigation
It is not unusual for deferred compensation (eg. stock options, restricted shares, RSU, REUs, and a whole host of others) to be addressed in marital settlement agreements, either as assets divided in equitable distribution, for purposes of computing income for support, or both. Often the language is complicated and in some agreements it is incomprehensible.
Child Support and College Contributions: How Are These Obligations Affected by a Strained Parent-Child Relationship?
In a recent decision, the appellate division has addressed the proper procedure for adjudicating a parent’s request to eliminate his obligation to pay child support and for college, when there is a question of whether the relationship with his child has been compromised.
In Zapata, v. Zapata, a father appealed the trial court orders
Decision of Errors – Imputation, Disability, Need for Support and Deviating from Guidelines
The recent unpublished decision of Gormley v. Gormley serves as a good reminder for four polestar issues in matrimonial litigation, below, as well as to put on your best evidence in an effort to ensure that the trial court enters the appropriate decision and, ultimately, to not stop litigating up the ladder when it fails
Moving Child Support from Place to Place
I have previously written about the custody and parenting time issues that may be presented when a child is moved from state to state within the country. But what of child support?
In an interesting recent unpublished decision, Flynn v. Flynn, the New Jersey Appellate Division examined the question: in a case where multiple