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We’ve covered our blog’s alimony (or “spousal maintenance”). We often reference alimony because an alimony award can have serious financial consequences for the payor and payee. Most parties going through a divorce are curious not only about the conditions which lead to alimony but also about the conditions which may provide grounds to modify or reduce an alimony award that has already been established. In the recent case of Stagia v. Moshovitis (2022), Maryland saw a layer added to its understanding of alimony modification. Let’s go over the facts of this case and then discuss the central lesson & the requirements for Alimony Reduction.
Facts & Outcome of the Case
The parties of this case divorced in 2017. Before this dissolution, the husband had built a successful string of Mediterranean cuisine restaurants. At the time of the divorce, the husband owned several restaurant locations in Maryland and other states. They valued the husband’s business assets at $4.2 million, and he had a yearly income of around $284,000. The husband was initially ordered to pay his ex-wife a monthly alimony award of $4,500 for an indefinite period (i.e., permanent alimony). The pandemic of 2020 wrought serious damage to the husband’s businesses, and soon after the economic shutdowns, his income took a substantial dive.When the husband attempted to reduce his alimony payment, his monthly income was roughly $13,000, a significant drop from $23,000 (his monthly income before the pandemic). Because the husband suffered such a prodigious drop in income, he ultimately petitioned the court to reduce or eliminate his alimony obligation. His ex-wife tried to argue that her ex-husband’s income drop was partly due to his financial mismanagement. And consequently, on that basis, the wife wants to prohibit the reduction or elimination. In other words, because the income drop was not completely faultless, the husband shouldn’t be able to argue that a modification is warranted. Both the trial court and the appellate court rejected the ex-wife’s argument.
Key Lesson: Lack of Fault is Not a Requirement for Alimony Reduction
You can modify or eliminate an alimony award when there is a substantial change in circumstances. In practical terms, this can mean various things, such as a job loss, inheritance, or other significant change. It is simply erroneous to think that you cannot change alimony awards. You can change them, but you can’t change them unless there is a legitimate reason, which means a material change in circumstances. The court found no reason to hold that a change in circumstances cannot be due to any fault on the part of the petitioner; absence of fault is not an element of alimony modification.Of course, the fault may be relevant depending on the situation. But mere fault alone doesn’t tell you enough to know whether a given modification request will be successful. Just because the husband mishandled his restaurant businesses during the pandemic doesn’t mean he isn’t entitled to a reduction. The court ultimately allowed the reduction because of his drop in income.
Contact the Murphy Law Firm for More Information
If you’d like to learn more, reach out to The Murphy Law Firm today by calling 240-493-9116.
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