Divorce Lawyers New York - Recent Family Law Decisons (13)
RECENT FAMILY LAW DECISIONS (13)
In General
At any time, either party may seek modification of maintenance award, and the judgment does not, in any way, restrict that right under the Act.
This section, while allowing termination upon death, remarriage, or cohabitation under subsection (c) of this section, also allows modification upon a showing of substantial change of circumstances under subsection (a) of this section.
Prior to the Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (750 ILCS 5/101 et seq.) there was no specific statutory provision in Illinois that the morality of a wife’s post-dissolution behavior affected her right to alimony. Under this standard, a wife’s cohabitation, while perhaps immoral under section 19 of the Divorce Act, did not provide a legal basis for termination of maintenance or alimony; had any portion of her conduct occurred on or after the effective date of this Marriage Act, the court could have terminated her maintenance from the date of the petition for modification or termination.
The court has power to modify child support orders of a divorce decree if subsequent changes in the conditions and circumstances of the parties render such modification necessary.
Binding
Alimony provisions in a divorce decree are of a vested and binding character upon a defendant.
Cost of Living
An increase in the cost of living, standing alone, has been repeatedly rejected as a sufficient reason to increase or augment alimony awards, because inflation affects both parties rather than merely one spouse or the other.
In Gross
Where defendant offered little evidence to show in what manner an award of alimony in gross (made under prior law) was so excessive as to constitute an abuse of discretion and plaintiff’s claim that the award was inadequate was equally unpersuasive, the trial court’s estimate of plaintiff’s actual needs was correct and not contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence presented.
Modification
A court was required to consider the conduct or condition in issue affecting modification of alimony only if it still occurred at the time of the petition or on or after the effective date of the Marriage Act.
For cases discussing modification of alimony.
Where practically all of the living expenses of a paramour of a defendant’s spouse were provided by defendant, who received almost all of her income from the alimony, and defendant paid all of the taxes, utility bills, and insurance and provided almost all of the food for the paramour, then alimony was modified.
Separation Agreements
When a trial court entered its decree for divorce and expressly approved the parties’ settlement agreement, it thereby incorporated into its decree the provisions of the agreement as to alimony. The rights of the parties thereafter rested upon the decree and it was subject to modification by the court pursuant to former Ill.Rev.Stat., ch 40, para. 19.
