Competing interests keep any proposal from moving forward

Everyone seems to agree that the alimony laws in New Jersey need reform. In particular, the concept of lifetime alimony. Famous cases have made national news as one man was forced to pay many times his current income. New guidelines, modeled after a 2011 Massachusetts alimony reform law, are championed by New Jersey Alimony Reform. They are calling for a major overhaul of the system. The State Bar Association’s Family Law Section believes that alimony based on marriage duration would eliminate permanent alimony, and feel this would not be good for certain disadvantaged spouses. They also express concern that the new proposed law would change how awards are calculated in the first place. The New Jersey Law Journal sets up the debate this way:

Under the NJAR bill, A-845, alimony duration would be capped at a period equal to: one half the life of the marriage, if it lasted five years or less; 60 percent, if less than 10 years but greater than five; 70 percent, if less than 15 years but greater than 10; 80 percent, if less than 20 years but greater than 15; and an indefinite period, if the marriage lasted longer than 20 years. The judge could deviate “in the interest of justice” based on specific findings.

The Bar says the law would:

totally undermine the contributions and sacrifices of a stay-at-home parent” by treating marriages with and without children the same way. And judges, though they’d be allowed to deviate, would rarely do so and instead take a “cookie cutter approach

The Bar has offered a different approach in measure A-1649

… it enumerates factors for judges to consider in connection with an application to modify or terminate alimony. The payer would have to demonstrate changed circumstances by a preponderance of the evidence, and the judge could order a change based on the payer’s retirement, job loss or, if self-employed, loss of business. A recipient’s cohabitation with a new partner also would qualify, and a judge could find such an arrangement exists even if they aren’t living together full time. Common factors for the judge to consider are the age and health of the ex-spouses, reasons for change in employment and whether the change is in good faith, and the accepted retirement age in the payer’s field or industry.

If you are faced with a future of paying alimony, you need to make certain that you are well represented by a family law attorney with experience dealing with New Jersey divorce law. We can help. Our offices are located at: Hackensack – Just off Route 4 3 University Plaza Drive Suite 207 Hackensack, N.J. 07601 Phone: 201-580-3411 Fax: 201-445-5867 We also offer numerous meeting locations throughout the three county area.

If you are about to go through a divorce, consider the issues raised in the article below. Divorce arbitration and mediation are alternatives to litigating your matter in Court. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/deborah-moskovitch/the-truth-about-divorce-y_b_4629267.html The partners at Aretsky & Aretsky, Esqs., are Court approved mediators.

Eric J. Aretsky Aretsky & Aretsky 3 University Plaza Drive, Suite 207 Hackensack, NJ 07601 Phone: (201) 996-0234 Fax: 201-445-5867

Our Hackensack divorce attorneys can help you if you believe your child support amount is unfair for any reason, if your ex has hired an attorney, if you have a business or other assets to protect, or if your ex is avoiding paying child support. Child support issues are not always simple. They are one of the most common causes of dispute in a divorce.Before you come to your first visit with an attorney, its helpful to have the latest information about your child support case . You can find your child support information on the state website: http://www.njchildsupport.org/# You can also call the New Jersey Child Support Information Line at 1-877-NJKIDS1, or visit your local office. The Bergen County Child Support office is located at 133 River Street, Hackensack, New Jersey, 07601 , and can be reached by phone at (201) 527-1200.The highly qualified Bergen County lawyers at Aretsky & Aretsky provide experienced, caring, and aggressive representation in the areas of Divorce, Criminal Defense, Employment Law and Personal Injury with offices in: Bergen County, Hackensack, Ridgewood, Mahwah, Fort Lee.

If your spouse has hurt you or threatened to hurt you, intentionally damaged your property, or repeatedly contacted you in a way that is annoying or intimidating, you may be able to get a restraining order against them. Our law firm serves many Fort Lee family law clients around these and other family law issues. A restraining order can require your spouse to do a of a number of things including: prohibit them from contacting you or others named in the order, from continuing the abusive behaviors, or from possessing a firearm. It can give you sole possession of the home you both live in, require them to pay for certain expenses, require them to undergo counseling, or other relief that you request for yourself or your children. If your spouse is being abusive, your family law attorney will help you collect the documentation you need of the abuse to get a restraining order. Your attorney can help you to decide what the order will compel your spouse to do or stop doing to keep you and your children safe. You may want to ask your attorney about pursuing criminal charges against your spouse.The highly qualified Bergen County lawyers at Aretsky & Aretsky provide experienced, caring, and aggressive representation in the areas of Divorce, Criminal Defense, Employment Law and Personal Injury with offices in: Bergen County, Hackensack, Ridgewood, Mahwah, Fort Lee.

As Bergen County employment law attorneys, we encounter all kinds of New Jersey employment concerns, from simple to unusual and complex.Here are some of common employment concerns that necessitate an attorney:1. Contact an attorney anytime you believe you were discriminated against on the basis of your race, nationality, sex, marital or domestic partnership status, age, medical condition or disability, or other protected status. Discrimination is always wrong , and an attorney will help you fight for justice and the compensation you deserve.2. You were not paid at least New Jersey minimum wage of $7.25 an hour for all the hours you worked. If you’ve been paid improperly, our employment attorneys in Bergen County can help you recover your wages.3. Workplace harrassment: No employee should ever be subjected to the hostile work environment created by sexual or other workplace harassment. Unlawful harassment can include unwelcome verbal conduct, such as racial slurs or offensive comments about the sexual orientation, religious dress, or disability of an employee. If you are a victim of unlawful harassment or discrimination, a Bergen County employment lawyer can help protect your employment rights.The highly qualified Bergen County lawyers at Aretsky & Aretsky provide experienced, caring, and aggressive representation in the areas of Divorce, Criminal Defense, Employment Law and Personal Injury with offices in: Bergen County, Hackensack, Ridgewood, Mahwah, Fort Lee.

Once they have made the difficult decision to get divorced, most people want it to be over as soon as possible. (If you are looking for a Ridgewood divorce attorney, see our website) The good news is that New Jersey does not have a waiting period for divorce, like some states do.If you have a simple case, no children, and few assets; or if you and your spouse are lucky enough to agree about most of the matters of the divorce; it could be all over in as soon as 2-3 months.For many divorcing couples, things are more complicated. While the dissolution itself doesn’t take long, things like parenting and dividing your assets can take longer to settle. Your attorney’s first priority is to make sure your interests are best represented in the final decision and that the process is fair to you, but they will also advise you on how to get it done as quickly as it can be.The highly qualified Bergen County lawyers at Aretsky & Aretsky provide experienced, caring, and aggressive representation in the areas of Divorce, Criminal Defense, Employment Law and Personal Injury with offices in: Bergen County, Hackensack, Ridgewood, Mahwah, Fort Lee.

Check out this article from The Jersey Journal about the debate over proposed law changes:Is alimony antiquated? Should child support depend on ability to pay?

“There’s a chorus of people shouting that alimony is a leftover from an earlier society and awards are arbitrary and unfair. They don’t complain as loudly about child support, but there’s a growing demand for amounts to be modified when payers hit economic hardships. Couples often wrangle over payments before, during and after their divorce, and few judges enjoy hearing their griping and sniping. In this not-so-great economy, complaints have grown even shriller and more frequent. Assemblyman Sean Kean of Monmouth County introduced legislation that already has been approved unanimously by Judiciary Committees in both houses of the Legislature. It would allow courts to modify child support and alimony payments when circumstances change. That means courts could lower payments if the paying spouse or parent lost a job or suffered some other significant decline in income lasting six months or more. Only if the income reduction wasn’t deliberate, of course….”

The highly qualified Bergen County lawyers at Aretsky & Aretsky provide experienced, caring, and aggressive representation in the areas of Divorce, Criminal Defense, Employment Law and Personal Injury with offices in: Bergen County, Hackensack, Ridgewood, Mahwah, Fort Lee.