I am a second wife and a divorce attorney. I practice law with my husband. My husband was divorced from his first wife in 2000 and was saddled with an overwhelming alimony order despite giving her all of the marital assets besides 1/2 of his 401(k).
Over a year ago my husband filed for modification so that his alimony would accurately reflect his current income. Never, would I have, as a divorce attorney, predicted the outcome!
During the course of litigation we were forced to reveal all of our business information (not surprising or even wrong), but I was also forced to turn over all of my personal financial documents and subjected to a hours long deposition.
The point of the deposition was not only to discover my financial situation but also an effort to prove that I was not an equal partner in our law practice! The litigation proceeded through to an "informal trial".
Despite the fact that the judge found that I am a partner at the firm and that we have a 5 year old child to support, she proceeded to base my husband's new alimony obligation on our ENTIRE income. The net result of course is that 30% of my income must go to support a woman with no disability and a college degree!
The only other way to support this result is to believe that despite the fact I am a working partner at our firm, I earn no income. Both scenarios are insulting, demeaning and humilating.
I either have worked several years as an attorney and put myself through law school with outrageous loans to pay for a college-educated woman with no young children to stay at home and read the newspaper or I have accomplished all of this to work and earn no salary.
It is time for unjust results like this to end! Thank you for recognizing this need and for all your hard work for change.
###
