In past generations, the majority of women were homemakers who relied on their husbands for financial support. Therefore, it made sense for men to pay alimony to their former wives when a marriage ended. After all, the wife had been home for years and may have had no marketable skills when faced with a divorce. However, times have changed. The majority of women now work outside the home, even those with young children. Lifelong alimony to a former spouse is no longer an entitlement, regardless of the situation. People like Steve Hitner, the founder and president of Mass Alimony Reform, have made sure of that.
Only fair-weather alimony adjustments allowed?
After his 23-year marriage ended in 1995, Mr. Hitner was forced to pay nearly $4,000 a month in alimony for the rest of his life. Despite financial troubles of his own after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, he was not allowed to reduce alimony payments to his former wife. When Steve Hitner remarried, his second wife’s income was taken into consideration and his alimony payment actually increased.
This resulted in him forming Mass Alimony Reform to change longstanding laws about alimony payments. He successfully argued that alimony should be for a limited time until the former spouse is able to earn enough to enjoy his or her previous standard of living. Legislation was also passed to tie the amount of alimony payments to the length of the marriage.
The alimony law in Florida
Florida is only of several states considering passing legislation similar to Massachusetts. If you are a divorced person who is forced to pay an unreasonable amount of alimony, contact the Law Office of K. Dean Kantaras, P.A. for help. Mr. Kantaras has been board certified by the Florida bar as a marital and family law attorney for several years. You are welcome to contact his office in either Palm Harbor or Clearwater/Largo to discuss your current alimony situation.