Court Awards Wife Alimony for a Period of Ten Years with Safe Harbor for Husband Up to $250,000 Annually
by
Joseph C. Maya on Mar. 28, 2024
Summary: In a dissolution of marriage action pending in the Judicial District of Fairfield at Bridgeport, the Court awarded the wife unallocated alimony and child support in the amount of $1,000 per week. The parties were married in 1999 and were the parents of two children, both of whom were minors at the time of trial. The Husband was thirty-eight years of age, had a degree in engineering, and worked for a family business owned by his father. The wife was forty years of age. She did not have a college degree and worked only seven hours per week.
The parties both alleged that the other caused the breakdown of the marriage by abusing drugs and alcohol, although the Court questioned the wife’s credibility on that topic. The wife also claimed that the husband expressed he wanted to end the marriage because he had met another woman. Despite the parties’ allegations, however, the Court found them equally at fault for the breakdown of the relationship.
The Trial
At trial, the wife also claimed that the husband underreported his income on his financial affidavit, although the Court noted that she presented no evidence to support the allegation. The Court ultimately reviewed the parties’ joint tax returns and found that the husband’s gross income at the time of trial was $140,000 per year, exclusive of any bonus and that the wife was earning $100 gross per week. Based on those figures, the Court determined that the presumptive child support award under the Connecticut Child Support Guidelines was $392 per week.
However, at the parties’ request, the Court entered an unallocated alimony and child support order, awarding the wife $1,000 per week for a period of ten years, with the full amount deductible by the husband and taxable to the wife. The Court further ordered the husband to pay the wife 50% of his bonus each year within ten days of his receipt of the same.
The Court specified that said sum shall also be paid to the wife as unallocated alimony and child support, and therefore was also deductible by the Husband and taxable to the wife. The Court allowed the husband a safer harbor up to $250,000 per year, and the wife a safe harbor up to $10,000 per year, thereby precluding future modifications unless and until their respective incomes exceeded the aforementioned amounts.
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