Zaleski v. Zaleski

Summary

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court reviewed a divorce judgment awarding the wife rehabilitative rather than general-term alimony under the Alimony Reform Act of 2011. The court held that the judge did not abuse her discretion in selecting rehabilitative alimony or in dividing the marital property and debt, but remanded for reconsideration of the alimony amount because the husband's bonus income was improperly excluded and for reconsideration of the life-insurance security requirement.

Holdings

1. A judge may award rehabilitative alimony rather than general term alimony when the statutory factors and findings establish with reasonable certainty that the recipient spouse can obtain employment through reasonable efforts and become economically self-sufficient within a predicted time, even without a specifically identifiable future job or event.
2. The calculation of alimony must include all of the payor spouse's income as defined by the Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines, including bonus income, subject to the statutory exclusions.
3. A requirement that the wife maintain life insurance for the husband's benefit was an abuse of discretion because the findings did not support security under the applicable statutes and the $1.6 million death benefit exceeded any financial obligation the wife had under the judgment.
4. The division of marital property and allocation of marital debt were not plainly wrong and excessive.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Probate and Family Court abused its discretion by awarding rehabilitative alimony rather than general term alimony.
2. Whether the alimony amount was required to include the husband's bonus income and other income sources.
3. Whether the requirement that the wife maintain life-insurance policies for the husband's benefit was supported by the findings and governing statutes.
4. Whether the division of marital property and allocation of marital debt were plainly wrong and excessive.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded