Q: Can a Non-modifiable alimony agreement be changed?
A:
By a court, no:
Family Law Code 8-103:
(b) The court may modify any provision of a deed, agreement, or settlement with respect to spousal support executed on or after January 1, 1976, regardless of how the provision is stated, unless there is a provision that specifically states that the provisions with respect to spousal support are not subject to any court modification.
(c) The court may modify any provision of a deed, agreement, or settlement with respect to alimony or spousal support executed on or after April 13, 1976, regardless of how the provision is stated, unless there is:
(1) an express waiver of alimony or spousal support; or
(2) a provision that specifically states that the provisions with respect to alimony or spousal support are not subject to any court modification.
By agreement of the parties, yes:
Sometimes life events happen where the payor spouse simply has insufficient income to continue the payment. In such cases, the practical reality is that the payee spouse is not getting paid without a lot of legal expense and litigation chasing after arrearages and having them reduced to judgment, and then trying to attach the payor spouse's assets. The Payor spouse may not have the assets or income to attach, and may further be permitted to claim statutory exemptions from attachment to protect various assets. In these circumstances, a voluntarily agreed sum reducing the "non-modifiable" alimony is generally in both parties' interests, as you cannot get blood from a stone, and getting voluntary reduced payment wthout litigation and expense is a lot better than getting no payments and expending a fortune having judgments entered that cannot be collected or satisfied. Most experenced attorneys do not draft or agree to "non-modifiable" alimony provisions on behalf of their payor client, without including language that allows for termination or reduction in the event of a stated drop in income, loss of employment or ability to work, medical disability, remarriage of the payee spouse, etc. In fact, non-modifiable alimony is most common when paid for a specific term of months that terminates at the end of the term. You will need to take the agreement containing the alimony provision to a lawyer to review all terms and provisions to know what can and cannot be done.
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