Child Support
Residency Requirements and Grounds for Divorce
To file for a divorce in Massachusetts:
- You and your spouse must have lived as husband and wife in the state, and the grounds for the divorce happened there
- You and your spouse must have lived as husband and wife in the state, and one of you lived there when the reason for the divorce took place, regardless of location of that event
- You must live in the state for one year after filing divorce papers if the reason for the divorce occurred outside the state
- You must live in the state when you file for divorce, and the grounds took place in the state
Massachusetts permits both "fault-based" and "no-fault" divorces. Grounds for fault-based divorces - in which one party is blamed for the breakdown of the marriage - are:
- Cruel and abusive treatment
- Utter desertion continued for one year
- A prison sentence of five years or more
- Confirmed habits of intoxication by the use of liquor, opium or other drugs
- Refusal or neglect to provide suitable support and maintenance for the other spouse
- Adultery
- Impotency
No-fault divorces - in which neither spouse is blamed for the breakdown of the marriage - are awarded on grounds of the "irretrievable breakdown" of the marriage. If you and your spouse agree on key issues of property and debt division, as well as child custody and child support matters, you can file a "Joint Petition for Divorce" with the Probate and Family Court. Your petition states your marriage is "irretrievably broken,"and the divorce can be finalized on an expedited basis without a trial.
Otherwise, a divorce case begins when one of the spouses files a "Complaint for Divorce" with the Probate and Family Court. The other spouse is then served with the paperwork and has time to respond. The court will then set a time for a hearing.
After your case is filed, either party can request temporary assistance from the court in the form of temporary custody and child support orders, and orders to determine who pays community debts on a temporary basis.
Dividing the Property
In Massachusetts, assets and debts acquired during your marriage - called "marital property" - are divided "equitably" when you divorce. This means a fair division, and it isn't always and equal. Courts look at many factors in deciding property division issues, including:
- Marriage length
- The conduct of the spouses during the marriage
- The age, health, station, occupation, amount and sources of income, vocational skills, employability, estate, liabilities and needs of each party
- The opportunity of the parties to acquire future income and assets
- The present and future needs of the children of the marriage
- The contribution of each party to the acquisition, preservation or appreciation in value of the marital property
- Homemaking contributions
The division of marital property is final and can't be modified or changed unless both parties agree to the change.
Be prepared with information on your property, including when you purchased it, an estimate of value, and details such as account numbers, serial numbers and so forth. You'll be ready to meet with a Massachusetts divorce lawyer and it can save you a lot of time and money.
Alimony
A court can order alimony to either spouse. In deciding the amount of alimony to award, the court generally considers such factors as:
- Marriage length
- The conduct of the spouses in a fault-based divorce
- The age, health, station, occupation, amount and sources of income, vocational skills, employability, estate, liabilities and needs of the spouses
- Future chances for each spouse to acquire assets and income
- The present and future needs of any dependant children of the marriage
- The contribution of each spouse to the acquisition, preservation or appreciation in value of any property, including homemaking
- Any health insurance coverage
A court can order temporary support while the divorce is pending. Most alimony is ordered for a specific length of time. Once ordered, it can be modified only upon a showing of a "change in circumstances."
Child Custody and Visitation
The court makes child custody decisions based on what is in the "best interest" of the child. In making custody decisions, the court considers the happiness and welfare of the child, taking into account whether the child's present or past living conditions have a negative impact on his physical, mental, moral or emotional health.
If both parents agree, the court may award joint custody unless the court finds that joint custody isn't in the best interest of the child. If the parents want to share custody, but can't reach an agreement, they must submit a shared parenting plan to the court.
Visitation awards to the non-custodial parent are within the discretion of the trial court judge. Creative visitation methods are possible, such as virtual visits with a web cam or other electronic methods.
After the custody order is signed by the judge and filed with the court clerk, both parents are bound by it. If you're denied court-ordered access to your child, you can seek help from the court. The judge may decide to modify the visitation order, order makeup visitation for the time missed and order counseling or mediation.
Child Support
Child support is based on factors listed in the official "Child Support Guidelines," including:
- Gross income of the paying parent
- Number of children the parent must support
- Ages of the children
The guidelines amount is presumed to be the correct child support amount, unless it is unjust or inappropriate. A court can deviate from the guideline amount when:
- The parent paying support has other minor children, and the amount of financial resources is limited
- The parent paying support has extraordinary expenses, such as travel-related visitation expenses, uninsured medical expense, and so forth
- There are other unusual circumstances
Changes to a child support order are based on a substantial change in circumstances, and the change is in the best interest of the child. An example is a big increase or decrease in either parent's income.
Questions for Your Attorney