What If One Spouse Falls On Hard Times After Gray Divorce?

If you wanted to make the claim that, when young people get married and divorced, they do so on a whim, you could find plenty of evidence for that. Emotions rule the day; a flirtatious text to a third party or an emotional outburst at a family gathering blows apart a marriage that has barely begun, but if there is a silver lining to this, it is that the couple has not been married long enough to amass much marital property, so the divorce case is simple. By contrast, gray divorce, where the parties are in their 50s or older, tends to be a decision that was years in the making. People agonize over the decision to leave their marriages, and during this process, they do years of mental calculations about what their old age will be like with the share of their marital property that they can hope to keep, and the money they can hope to earn or inherit after they get divorced. Even if you think through every penny you will need, and your spouse agrees to the terms you have requested, or something similar to them, old age can hit you harder and sooner than you expected after your divorce becomes final. If you think you have an airtight plan for gray divorce, you still need a reality check from a Birmingham divorce lawyer.

You Have No Obligation to Give Your Ex-Spouse a Bigger Equalizing Payment Just Because His Health Failed a Year After Your Divorce Became Final

Post divorce litigation, while unpleasant, can be just what you need if the property division agreement the judge indicated for you was unfair and put you in a tight spot financially. Likewise, you can modify your alimony order if you suffer a loss of health or employment after your divorce and can no longer pay the amount the court ordered you to pay. You cannot, however, modify your property division agreement just because life happened to you after you got divorced.

For example, assume that you and your ex agreed during divorce mediation that she would keep the marital home and pay you a $100,000 lump sum equalizing payment to compensate you for your share of the home equity. When the divorce finalized and your ex paid you the $100,000, you were 60 years old and planned to work for at least another five years before retiring. Your ex was also still working, so she did not need alimony. Two years later, you suffered a serious illness and had to retire early. If you go back to court and try to get a bigger equalizing payment, the court will say, “tough luck.” You should have considered this possibility before you agreed to the terms of your divorce.

Contact Peeples Law About Gray Divorce

A Birmingham family law attorney can help you get a divorce settlement that prepares you for retirement and for the unexpected.  Contact Peeples Law in Birmingham, Alabama today to schedule a consultation.

Source:

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