HOW EQUAL RIGHTS FOR MEN AND WOMEN ARE EXTENDING TO ALIMONY

Michigan residents may agree that the days of men being the sole breadwinners of the family and women being the sole caretakers of the home are gone. This cultural change may be finally working its way into divorce proceedings, as more women are being required to pay alimony and child support to their ex-husbands.

A recent survey by the American Association of Matrimonial Lawyers has shown a significant increase in the number of women being held accountable to their ex-husbands, and being required to pay alimony and child support. This is a stark contrast from the way that courts have commonly viewed the division of assets and assignment of support in divorce cases.

Some of the reasons for this shift include the fact that more women are working outside the home and making more money than in previous decades. Many are also educated at levels where they can support themselves in the event of divorce.

It is also thought that judges are less sympathetic to the plight of women than in the past because there is so much room in today’s economy and market for women to get on their feet and support themselves and their children. While men have often borne the financial strain that alimony represents, some suggest that it’s about time that judges became gender blind in divorce proceedings.

While the gender shift in earnings has yet to be fully matched in the equality of men and women in divorce cases, it leaves room for hope that divorcing men in Michigan and elsewhere, with the right tools and help, may not wind up saddled with the full financial burden of a divorce.

Source: Business Insider, “More Men Are Winning Battles In Divorce Court Today,” Mandi Woodruff, May 10, 2012