Brick, Jones, McBrien & Hickey has partnered with Needham Art Association to highlight the work of local artists throughout our office.
Since 1949, the Needham Art Association has been dedicated to supporting the visual arts and art education in our community.
The art displayed rotates every couple of months, and may be purchased. Enjoy the art while you are in our office and let us know if you’re interested in any particular piece!
Q. My husband has an 18-year-old son from his first marriage who started college in September. He went back to court to end his child support – after all his son is a grown man and should be supporting himself. Not only was my husband ordered to continue to pay child support, he was ordered to pay $15,000 per year toward college expenses.
No one paid for my husband or I to get a college degree – we both worked hard and earned it. We don’t have this kind of money. It makes no sense for him to pay child support to the mother when the kid doesn’t live with her on top of paying for school.
A. In Massachusetts the law says that a child becomes emancipated when he reaches age 18 only if he is no longer dependent on his parents for support. However, if he continues to attend school (college or vocational school) then he is not emancipated until age 21. And, if at age 21 he is still pursuing a degree or vocational training full time he is not emancipated until the earlier of his completing his education or turning 23. Our legislature made these rules a long time ago so if you believe they are unfair, your appeal is to your senator and your state representative.
When college expenses are ordered, child support often decreases but if it doesn’t, that is because a judge has determined that the support obligor has the ability to continue to pay child support while contributing to college.
While your husband’s son may be living on campus during the school year, he probably is not living there during the summer or school vacation periods, meaning he needs a roof over his head when he returns home. Presumably that roof is covering his mother’s home and that is what your husband is contributing to for his son even though it also benefits the mother.
Certainly, if your husband does not like the order, he can appeal the decision to the Appeals Court but he must file his Notice of Appeal within 30 days of the judgment being entered on the docket. If the order is only temporary, he can insist on a trial and present the judge with all of his evidence supporting his inability to meet the payment and hope for a reduction.
Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com
Brick, Jones, McBrien & Hickey LLP is seeking a receptionist for its busy divorce and family law practice located in Needham. Specifically, we are seeking a dedicated, organized, self-starter with great attention to detail to work with our paralegals and attorneys on various tasks including: answering phones; greeting clients / guests; scheduling conference rooms; maintaining conference rooms; maintaining client files; updating binders for court; coordinating the service of subpoenas, discovery and motions; opening, scanning and distributing mail; e-filing motions with courts; editing documents; preparing cover letters; etc. Client interface and confidentiality are critical parts of the job, so empathy, discretion and strong communication skills are important. We will consider full-time or school-hours applicants. We offer a competitive salary structure and a comprehensive benefits package. We welcome someone who desires a long-term role in a collegial environment. Please send your statement of interest and resume in confidence to Wendy Hickey at whickey@brickjones.com.
Q. My husband has been representing himself in our divorce for several months. He had a lawyer in the beginning but fired him when he lost custody during our first motion hearing. My husband has a bad temper and he treated his lawyer the same way he treats me.
He just hired a new lawyer who sent out a bunch of new discovery requests just days before the deadline. Most of the things he is asking for were already produced to the first lawyer when I had to do my self-disclosure and answer interrogatories. I don’t understand why they get to do this again making me spend more on legal fees. Do I have to answer the same things again?
A. No, you don’t have to re-produce things you already sent to your husband’s first lawyer. By definition those items are now in your husband’s custody and you don’t have to duplicate efforts or incur a second round of legal fees to do so. The problem is, it sounds like some of the requests are new and as to those, you will need to provide the requested information if it exists. Also, if your discovery was produced months ago, he is entitled to supplementation meaning you will need to produce records that you received over the last few months from your financial institutions which did not exist at the time you last produced records. Likewise, you are entitled to ask for supplementation either now or closer to a trial date and he will have to provided updated information.
For now, I suggest you object to re-producing what was already produced rather than filing a motion to protect you from having to answer again. It will end up being the cheaper option for you in the long run. Produce updated records not already produced and answer any new requests. Then ask your lawyer about the strategy of when you want your husband to supplement his discovery.
The interrogatories are a different matter. He is only allowed to ask 30 questions. Your question implies you have already answered interrogatories. You don’t have to answer more than 30 so count them up.. If he wants more answers he will have to ask the court to allow him to ask more questions.
Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com
Q. My husband and I worked with a mediator to prepare our divorce paperwork. I am taking a job in Australia in May. We have been separated for the last 10 years and only lived together for two. He has a house in Plymouth that he bought after we separated. I have a house in Fairhaven which I bought after we separated.
Our paperwork was rejected by the court. They said we filed in the wrong county, and we didn’t properly divide our assets. We don’t have a ton of money and didn’t see the need for lawyers because we agreed to everything. I don’t know how else to get divorced and I really can’t just come back for a hearing once I leave and start my job in Australia. What do you suggest?
A. Without seeing the agreement, I can only answer based on assumptions. The rejection based on wrong county could have been because you last lived together in Plymouth County. If you both live in different places but one of you still lives in the same county where you last lived together, that is where you should file. That being said, if you last lived together in a third county, you can file in any one of those three counties. There is no requirement to file electronically so you should walk the documents in next time and speak with someone in the Registry to ensure you are not rejected again.
Assets need to be divided equitably which does not necessarily mean equally. If you specifically state in the agreement that you keep everything in your name and he keeps everything in his name, that should suffice. If your agreement does not specifically list out the kinds of assets you each have and specifically waive your interests in each other’s holdings, you can edit the agreement to include those details. The length of marriage and separation, should lead to a conclusion that each of you keeping what’s in your own name is fair and reasonable.
You don’t need to hire lawyers to navigate this. If your papers are rejected a second time, ask to see the volunteer lawyer for the day to look over your paperwork for further tips. If the hearing date is after your move, just ask for a Zoom hearing.
Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com
Q. My husband and I are finishing up our divorce agreement. We have been working with a mediator. He said once everything is signed, we need to file it with the court and get a hearing date. My friend told me she was in court last week and some poor woman went to the clerk’s office and begged for help filing her divorce. She was repeatedly told she had to e-file it and the woman was saying she had e-filed and it was rejected twice and she just wanted to be divorced already.
I am really not so good with technology and can only imagine I will be that woman. Do you have any tips on how I can do things right the first time? And can you tell me what happens after we file?
A. First of all, you do not have to e-file your paperwork but many people prefer to do it that way. You can take your documents and walk in to the court clerk’s office with a money order or bank check for $215 (that is the filing fee for a joint petition for divorce where you do not need a summons). They do not accept personal checks but most, if not all, accept credit card payments. You can also send the court all of the papers and your payment by mail, Federal Express, courier or any other such delivery method you can think of.
If you want to electronically file your documents, you need to upload them in a specific order for acceptance. Assuming all of these forms are necessary for your case, the order should be as follows: Joint Petition for Divorce, Marriage Certificate, Form R 408, Affidavit of Care and Custody, Affidavit of Irretrievable Breakdown, Separation Agreement, Financial Statements and Child Support Guidelines Worksheet.
Once your documents are accepted for filing you will get a notice of a hearing date. Some judges are still hearing uncontested divorces over Zoom, others want you to come in person. Either way bring a copy of your paperwork with you so if the judge has a question you can refer to the papers if you need to.
The judge will ask you a series of questions including whether you read and understand the agreement, if you feel it is fair in your circumstances, and if anyone forced you to sign.
Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com
Q. My daughter is finishing high school this year. When we separated, our agreement established child support and required us to equally share pre-college expenses for things like tutoring for test prep, applications, etc.
My ex owes me $8,000 for her half of all of the pre-college expenses – she has not paid anything despite my repeated requests for reimbursement. Our daughter has been accepted at her first choice of schools which happens to be where my ex works and as part of her employment, our daughter gets free tuition, we just have to cover room, board, books and supplies.
Before I file a modification and ask the judge to allocate responsibility, can you help me understand how this benefit gets applied? Will I get some break on child support now that our daughter will be in college?
A. Unless the judge makes a finding that you and your ex have the ability to pay more than the cost of UMass Amherst, half the cost of UMass will be the cap on each of your respective obligations to pay for college. With that in mind, depending on where your daughter is planning to go and the costs above tuition, you should crunch some numbers before making any proposal to your ex. First, you need to realize, your ex will be taxed on the value of your daughter’s tuition because it will become part of her compensation and considered taxable income to her.
She will not be able to claim because she has this tuition benefit, she somehow does not have to pay the $8,000 due you on the pre-college expenses.
Generally, when a child goes to college and parents are contributing to the cost, child support is reduced but the amount of the reduction is within the discretion of the judge. In calculating the new child support amount, you can argue her income should be grossed up to include the tuition benefit. Weighing the potential cost of litigation, you should send her a proposal for global resolution of all the issues before filing anything. Offer to pay your daughter’s non-tuition expenses including an allowance directly to your daughter with your ex covering the tuition in exchange for termination of child support. Then write it up as a modification agreement to present jointly for court approval.
Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com
Q. My ex-husband stopped paying alimony earlier this year. Even though our divorce happened before the new alimony law, he said he reached the “durational limit” and, now that he can stop paying alimony, he is going to retire. He is only 50. He wants to retire and travel the world.
Our only child was in a serious accident two years ago and I had to stop working to care for her full time. She is in a wheelchair and has a brain injury. Before the accident she was considered emancipated because she finished college but now she is too old for child support and cannot support herself.
Do I have any recourse to make my ex pay alimony longer?
A. First and foremost, your ex does not have a right to just stop paying alimony even if he thinks the durational limit is met. You can and should file a complaint for contempt for his unilateral decision to stop paying. Make a demand for his financial statement so you can quantify just how much money he has. After all, you have to prove his ability to pay the contempt arrears as part of that case.
To get out of paying alimony, he will need to file a complaint for modification to establish the durational limit based on the length of your marriage. At that, under the statute, you can ask the court to deviate from the durational limit in accordance with M.G.L. chapter 208, Section 53(e)(9). It is the catchall provision which says that the court can deviate based on any circumstances the judge feels is relevant. You will need to prove an ongoing need by an elevated standard of clear and convincing evidence. I suggest making a day in the life video of what you do all day with and for your daughter which prevents you from working in any meaningful capacity. The video along with your financial statement including your daughter’s expenses will paint the needed picture for the judge.
The fact that he has decided to retire at 50 to travel the world while you are back home caring for your child is not going to portray him in the light he likely wants to be seen. My guess is he will come to the bargaining table before this goes to a judge for determination.
Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com
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Q. My husband and I are in the process of getting divorced. We have the kids sorted out, child support and alimony and most of the asset division. We are stuck on the house. We both want it – we bought it 15 years ago – it is big and old and we both still love it. He got an appraisal that I think is a bit low and he really wants to buy out my interest at that level. I just don’t want to move. I also think whoever keeps the house will have an advantage because that’s where the kids will want to be more often than not as they get older.
What happens if I don’t agree that he can buy me out?
A. There are a few things that can happen from negotiating a higher buyout to forcing the issue to trial. There are some possible advantages to his buying you out. Would you feel the same way if you could goose up his number a bit? If you really think its worth more, get your own appraisal. If it is much higher than his, try to get him to buy you out at your number. If the numbers are close, but yours is higher, you can either try to get him to your number or agree to average the two. Of course, its possible your number will be lower.
If you are not convinced this is the right thing to do, you can force the issue to trial. You can enter into an agreement on everything but the disposition of the house. You can ask the judge to schedule a one-day trial so you can each have your appraisers testify to establish the value and you and your husband can each testify about why you should each be the one to buy out the other’s interest. At the end of the day, I can almost guarantee everyone loses and the judge just orders the house to be sold making everyone start over in a new abode.
Consider some alternatives. If he keeps the house, you will have a down-payment for a new home, possibly a place that you would want to live in as a single person once your children are off at college, likely with less maintenance than the existing house. Meanwhile, your share of the equity won’t be reduced by a broker’s commission or capital gain taxes if he is buying out your share in the way it would if a judge orders it sold.
Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com
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