Deegan v. Deega

603 A.2d 542 (N.J.App. 1992)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

W and H were divorced in 1985. H was ordered to pay W $250.00 per week in alimony. In 1990, H decided to retire and advised W by letter that he wished to amicably resolve the issue of alimony. W did not respond. On April 27, 1990, defendant retired, four months short of his 62nd birthday. On August 22, 1990, he moved for an order terminating alimony. In support of the motion, the 62-year old defendant filed a certification stating that he had previously shared his pension with his former wife thus eliminating that asset as a source for alimony. H was a steamfitter, and he had legitimate reasons for an early retirement. H got a lump sum pension distribution of $189,801.03 which he placed into an IRA for a total annual income of $13,106.25. W who had been unemployed at the time of the divorce was, at the time of the motion, earning $20,000.00 per year at Brookdale Community College. W opposed the motion and characterized it as a voluntary act and asked the court not to allow him to stop the support she needed to survive. Without a plenary hearing, the judge denied defendant's motion, and granted plaintiff's cross-motion. The judge reasoned that individuals who have obligations and in particular alimony and child support obligations cannot voluntarily retire and then say to the court, we have a substantial change of circumstances. H appealed: a plenary hearing was mandatory, and the trial judge erred in determining that H had failed to meet the changed circumstances standards.