You may have had a stable, high-paying job when the New Jersey family court ordered your alimony duties during your divorce case. However, due to unforeseen circumstances, you may no longer hold this job position, nor get the same steady stream of income you were once accustomed to. So when changes in your work life happen, you may wonder if your alimony obligations will mirror that. Without further ado, please continue reading to learn if it is legally acceptable to stop paying alimony after losing your job and how an experienced Bergen County alimony attorney at McNerney & McAuliffe can help modify your order.
Is it okay to stop paying alimony after a recent job loss?
You must understand that you are not automatically off the hook with making your monthly alimony payments once you lose your job or otherwise primary source of income. This is because your alimony obligation is a court order that will not cease simply due to personal matters in your life.
Further, if you fail to uphold your end of this deal, you may be held in contempt of court. Specifically, contempt of court is considered a crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful to a New Jersey family court of law and its officers, in the form of behavior that opposes or defies their authority and efforts towards justice and dignity. This offense may leave the court with no choice but to penalize you with fines, an order to pay your former spouse’s legal fees, and even an order to serve jail time.
What can I do to modify my alimony order after losing a job?
You may want nothing more than to carry yourself as an upstanding individual and fulfill your alimony obligations each month. However, your recent job loss may make it close to impossible to make ends meet. So, the one way you can seek relief in this matter is by formally petitioning the New Jersey family court for a post-judgment modification. To reiterate, you cannot stop paying alimony in the meantime. Rather, you must continue to pay at the pre-established rate and wait for an official order for a modification or termination.
To be successful in obtaining a modification or termination, you must prove a couple of things as fact. First, you must demonstrate that you lost your job due to circumstances beyond your reasonable control. For example, you could not have gotten fired due to your poor behavior in the workplace or otherwise committing a violation of your employment contract. Secondly, you must show that you are actively searching for new employment opportunities; hopefully those that are of equal or higher pay.
You should know that a skilled Bergen County family law attorney is here to assist you with whatever your legal issue may be. So please reach out to us at McNerney & McAuliffe today.
