Nearly three years ago, in February 2012, alimony became the subject of contentious legislative debate in New Jersey. A reform movement was quickly afoot, and there were calls for a blue ribbon commission to study and review the laws governing alimony. Both the Senate and the Assembly soon introduced resolutions to establish a commission. The New Jersey State Bar Association supported a commission to review alimony, and amassed a coalition of 24 separate organizations, totaling more than 160,000 members, to push for enactment of a revised alimony statute. The groups advocating for reform were also pushing for a commission.
Over the next two years, however, the alimony reformers would deviate from supporting a commission, instead supporting the establishment of formulaic guidelines that essentially mimicked those enacted in Massachusetts in 2010. Family lawyers in New Jersey recognized that the application of the Massachusetts-based arbitrary guidelines had no place in New Jersey, as our courts, to achieve fairness and equity, place significant weight on the individual facts and circumstances of each particular case. As the lobbying efforts intensified in both camps, with the reformers on one side and the coalition on the other, it was critical to the coalition that any alterations to the alimony statute continue to recognize that marriages and civil unions are partnerships and, therefore, sacrifices and commitments made by both parties during these partnerships must be considered in any alimony analysis.
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