Legal Question in Family Law in New Jersey

Your husband can ask the court to impute to you the income you would earn if you worked parttime. It would seem that working fulltime your would earn $50,000.00 or more. You could still get alimony. The formula used in Bergen and Passaic Counties is 30 percent of the difference in your respective income. 30 percent of $50,000 is $15,000. This is only a possible calculation. Each divorce is unique.

We really need to break this down into parts because there are several issues here. First, the issue of money made "on the books". That, I would think, means that you are keeping some money that is not being reported to the taxing authorities. Leaving aside, for the moment, that that would be illegal, it does contribute to your ability to earn a living and you would certainly agree should be taken into consideration when alimony is calculated. If the roles were reversed (that is if your husband was making money "off the books"), wouldn't you want that taken into consideration when his alimony obligation was calculated? Second, he cannot make you "work more"; however, he may be able to convince a Court that you are "underemployed" meaning that you could be making more money due to available time during the regular work week. If a Court was convinced of that, you might have that income imputed to you, whether you work or not, thus reducing his alimony obligation. The calculation of alimony can get very complicated and it would be best for you to seek the advice of an attorney.

Keep in mind that this advice is based purely on the little bit of information that you have given to me. There certainly may be other factors that would change my opinion. Further, no one can rely on advice from an attorney who has not been retained. You will only be able to rely on advice from an attorney who you have actually retained. Good luck! Rob Gleaner

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