Alimony and Support Archives

Why doesn’t marriage come with a guarantee?

March 26, 2020

Alimony and Support, Divorce Fears, Divorce Law, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness, Divorce Prevention/Marriage Preservation

Why doesn’t marriage come with a guarantee? It does, in a manner of speaking, but they are guarantees that few are willing to honor or enforce. An example of a guarantee (of sorts*) in divorce is alimony. The idea behind…

2020 UT App 34 – Petrzelka v. Goodwin – alimony, income, retirement funds

2020 UT App 34 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS PEGGY PETRZELKA, Appellee, v. JAMES E. GOODWIN, Appellant. Opinion No. 20180923-CA Filed March 5, 2020 First District Court, Logan Department The Honorable Thomas Willmore No. 164100050 Ashley E. Bown, Attorney for…

Redden v. Redden – 2020 UT App 22 – findings, alimony, ability to pay

February 18, 2020

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law

ability to pay, abuse of discretion, alimony, auto loan, credit cards, expenses, findings of fact, student loans

2020 UT App 22 – THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS DEBBIE ANN REDDEN, Appellee, v. SPENCER DEAN REDDEN, Appellant. Opinion No. 20180852-CA Filed February 13, 2020 Third District Court, Salt Lake Department The Honorable Robert P. Faust No. 164907729 Douglas…

What if I make my last alimony payment in pennies?

January 28, 2020

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Spousal Support

alimony, pay, paying, pennies

What would be the legal ramifications if I make my last alimony payment in pennies? Unless you could prove that the only practicable way you could pay your last alimony payment (which I would imagine would number at least in…

Burggraaf v. Burggraaf – 2019 UT App 195 – imputing income, vacating alimony

December 9, 2019

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Appeal, Child Custody, Child Support, Child Support Enforcement, Children in Divorce, Co-parenting, Custody, Debts, Discovery, Division of Marital Property, Divorce and Taxes, Divorce Law, Divorce Preparedness, Domestic Violence, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Fault, Finances, Joint Legal Custody, Joint Physical Custody, Judges, Marital Home, Marital Property, Men's Divorce Issues, Mothers' Divorce Issues, Parent Time, Personal Property, Physical Custody, Property Division, Real Estate/Real Property, Sole Custody, Spousal Support, Utah Code, Utah Court of Appeals, Utah Court of Appeals Decisions, Utah Law, Visitation, Women's Divorce Issues

2019 UT App 195, ability to pay, alimony, appeal, calculating alimony, calculating child support, Child Support, debt, divorce, imputed income, need, property distribution, separate debt, student loans, Utah Court of Appeals, vacate

2019 UT App 195 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS CAROL BURGGRAAF, Appellee, v. BRIAN JOSEPH BURGGRAAF, Appellant. Opinion No. 20180405-CA Filed November 29, 2019 Second District Court, Ogden Department The Honorable Camille L. Neider No. 154902227 Julie J. Nelson, Erin…

2019 UT App 147 – McQuarrie v. McQuarrie – termination of alimony

September 3, 2019

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Men's Divorce Issues, Settlement, Spousal Support, Termination of Alimony, Utah Code, Utah Court of Appeals, Utah Court of Appeals Decisions, Utah Law, Women's Divorce Issues

termination of alimony, Utah Code Ann. § 30-3-5(10), Utah Code Ann. § 30-3-5(9)

2019 UT App 147 – McQuarrie v. McQuarrie THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS MELVIN C. MCQUARRIE, Appellant and Cross-appellee, v. JANETTE COLLEDGE MCQUARRIE, Appellee and Cross-appellant. Opinion No. 20170956-CA Filed August 29, 2019 Third District Court, Salt Lake Department The…

What is the easiest way to request alimony in a divorce?

August 16, 2019

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Fault, Men's Divorce Issues, Spousal Support, Women's Divorce Issues

ability to pay, accustomed during the marriage, alimony, divorce, easiest way, fault substantially contributed to the breakup of the marriage, financial support, maintain, need, request alimony, standard of living, Utah, Utah Code § 30–3–35(8)(c)

In my jurisdiction (Utah) it would be as easy as making the request in the complaint for divorce, i.e., “Petitioner requests that he/she be awarded alimony.” If by your question you mean to ask, “What is the best argument for…

Why do courts seem to rule against husbands so unfavorably regarding custody and alimony?

Sometimes a husband/father is legitimately ruled against in a child custody case because he is unfit to exercise custody. Sometimes that unfitness may be his own fault (he’s abusive and/or neglectful), other times the unfitness may be due to circumstances…

Eberhard v. Eberhard – 2019 UT App 114 – modification of alimony

2019 UT App 114 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS TODD EBERHARD, Appellant, v. LORI ANN EBERHARD, Appellee. Opinion No. 20170721-CA Filed June 27, 2019 Third District Court, Salt Lake Department The Honorable Paige Petersen No. 024906303 David Pedrazas, Attorney for…

Janson v. Janson – 2019 UT App 106 – setting aside settlement agreement

June 24, 2019

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Appeal, Court Rules, Division of Marital Property, Divorce Court, Divorce Law, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness, Divorce Procedure, Evidence, Finances, Marital Home, Marital Property, Men's Divorce Issues, Modification of Alimony, Motion Practice, Negotiation, Pension, Personal Property, Petition to Modify Decree of Divorce, Procedure and Evidence, Property Division, QDRO (Qualified Domestic Relations Order), Real Estate/Real Property, Retirement Benefits, Separate Property, Settlement, Spousal Support, Termination of Alimony, Utah Court of Appeals, Utah Court of Appeals Decisions, Utah Law, Women's Divorce Issues

2019, 2019 UT App 106, 401(k), alimony, both parties represented by counsel, court, DEIDRE SUE JANSON, discretion, divorce action, enforceable, extrinsic evidence, Honorable Andrew H. Stone, IRA, Jamie Carpenter Attorney for Appellant, JEFFREY ALAN JANSON, June 20, Kara L. Barton and Ashley Wood Attorneys for Appellee JUDGE MICHELE M. CHRISTIANSEN FORSTER authored this Opinion, marital home, meeting of the minds, motion to set aside a written stipulation, No. 164906327, Opinion No. 20170541-CA, pension, preserve an issue for appeal., purpose of considering extrinsic evidence, QDRO, Salt Lake Department, THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS, Third District Court, to clarify ambiguous terms in the contract, Woodward formula

2019 UT App 106 – Janson v. Janson – setting aside stipulation THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS DEIDRE SUE JANSON, Appellant, v. JEFFREY ALAN JANSON, Appellee. Opinion No. 20170541-CA Filed June 20, 2019 Third District Court, Salt Lake Department The…

Does cohabitation before marriage affect how long alimony is awarded?

March 4, 2019

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Cohabitation, Common Law Marriage, Spousal Support

alimony, cohabitation, common law marriage, duration of marriage, length of marriage

Does cohabitation before marriage affect how long alimony is awarded? How can cohabitation and marriage be calculated to determine the terms of a divorce judgment? Great question. How long can alimony be awarded? In Utah, where I practice divorce and…

A real client’s questions about divorce settlement and mediation

Here is a real client’s questions about divorce settlement and mediation. Don’t worry, I’ve removed the names and changed out the details to protect confidentiality. This client asked a lot of questions that frequently come up, so the client’s e-mail…

Is It Harder to Get a Job After 40? Should Divorce Courts Care?

January 25, 2019

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Child Support, Child Support Enforcement, Child Support Modification

40 years old, 7th District, age 40, alimony, Child Support, employment, imputation, impute, inc. magazine, job, unemployed

I just came across this from “Inc. this Morning” from Inc. magazine. It’s something you and the court may need to keep in mind when it comes to child support and/or alimony: “A friend of mine turned 40 recently, and…

What useful things can Jeff Bezos’s divorce can teach us

Question: Amazon boss Jeff Bezos and wife MacKenzie are divorcing. Who do you think will get the custody of their 4 kids? I don’t know enough about the family’s circumstances to know. Assuming both parents are personally “fit” to exercise…

Hartvigsen v. Hartvigsen – 2018 UT App 238 – alimony, marital property

2018 UT App 238 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS DANIELLE MARIE HARTVIGSEN, Appellant, v. RICHARD MYERS HARTVIGSEN, Appellee. Opinion No. 20160069-CA Filed December 28, 2018 Fourth District Court, Provo Department The Honorable Lynn W. Davis No. 064402132 Danielle Marie Hartvigsen,…

Should all spousal support/alimony be revoked?

November 14, 2018

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Men's Divorce Issues, Mothers' Divorce Issues, Spousal Support, Women's Divorce Issues

alimony, alimony for life, lifetime alimony, spousal support

Should all spousal support/alimony be revoked? No, but I wouldn’t be upset if it was largely overhauled to reflect circumstances as they are now. Because originally wives didn’t get half the marital property in divorce, alimony was all wives (wives,…

As a man, what steps can I take to safeguard my interests before telling my wife I want a divorce?

November 2, 2018

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Child Custody, Children in Divorce, Coping With Divorce, Dirty Tricks, Division of Marital Property, Divorce Costs, Divorce Fears, Divorce Law, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness, Evidence, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Finances, Men's Divorce Issues, Mothers' Divorce Issues, Preparing for Divorce, Women's Divorce Issues

As a man, what steps can I take to safeguard my interests before telling my wife I want a divorce? There are two types of men who ask this question: good men and bad men. So many people, when they…

Hosking v. Chambers – 2018 UT App 193 – termination of alimony

October 22, 2018

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Men's Divorce Issues, Termination of Alimony, Utah Court of Appeals, Utah Court of Appeals Decisions, Women's Divorce Issues

alimony, cohabitation, common household involving shared expenses and shared decisions, intimate relationship, shared residence, termination, termination of alimony

2018 UT App 193 The Utah Court of Appeals CRAIG HOSKING, Appellee, v. ERIN JO CHAMBERS, Appellant. Opinion No. 20160444-CA Filed October 12, 2018 Second District Court, Ogden Department The Honorable W. Brent West No. 044901699 Jason B. Richards, Brandon…

A list of common, but very good, Utah divorce questions (with answers)

ERIC, MY HUSBAND AND I HAVE BEEN MARRIED FOR 20+ YEARS. WE HAVE 4 CHILDREN TOGETHER 3 OF WHOM ARE STILL MINOR CHILDREN. I WAS WONDERING IF YOU MIGHT BE WILLING TO ANSWER A FEW QUESTIONS FOR ME (IN ALL…

Why is dividing money in a divorce so difficult? Shouldn’t it be as simple as take what each earned?

October 10, 2018

Divorce Utah

Alimony and Support, Assets/Debt/Property, Division of Marital Property, Marital Property

alimony, divide, division, income, marital assets, marital property, property, support

Why is dividing money in a divorce so difficult? Shouldn’t it be as simple as each takes what each earned? In Utah (where I practice law), the law is not “take what we each earned.” In Utah, the law is:…