Nov 4, 2015
In this episode I interview New York City divorce attorney Morghan Richardson, who comments on the recent state senate ruling which DRAMATICALLY slashes the income cap used for calculating alimony payments from $543,000 to $175,000 -- plus factors in child support into the calculations.
Bottom line: Rich, lesser-earning spouses -- nearly always wives -- of rich men in New York can no longer expect big, fat alimony checks. Judges -- especially female judges, Richardson observes -- are telling stay-at-home moms to get jobs. "They have very little sympathy for people who are not learning in," says Richardson. "Women on the bench worked extremely hard to get there, and they have less sympathy for somebody focused only on family life."
I also interview Dana Lim, a California mom of two who turned down significant alimony and child support when she divorced -- even though she;d been a stay-at-home mom and had little earning potential at first. Things were so dire she couldn't afford to eat some days. But today Lim is grateful for her decision, which she says pushed her to take professional risks that paid off. She also credits her positive co-parenting relationship with her ex, who she says has dramatically improved his involvement with their kids, in part because there is no money complicating their arrangement.