Q. My ex husband lost his job in July.  He just turned 60 and is supposed to pay alimony for another seven years.  He told me he doesn’t want to go back to work and prefers to retire early – he said he has enough money and the year after our divorce, he inherited a lake house from his father. He plans to sell his house, move to the lake and spend his time fishing.  I was the typical at home wife who did everything for our children and made sure he was fully supported so he could have the career he had in a large firm working long hours and traveling significantly.

His house is worth about a $1.5 million – he bought me out and I bought a small condo near our children which still has a small mortgage.  I did go back to work but have limited skills and am only earning $40,000.  I needed the $100,000 per year alimony he was paying me and without it I (a) won’t ever be able to retire, and (b) may have to get a second job to make ends meet while he sits around fishing.

Is it worth taking him back to court?  He has basically told me I can’t make him pay because he has zero income.

A. While I have not seen your agreement to know if there is any unusual language, the short answer is yes, it is worth going back to court.  He cannot just stop paying alimony because he lost his job.  He has assets out of which he can continue to pay while he petitions the court for a modification to reduce or eliminate alimony.  Until he gets a court order, he is on the hook unless you have a percentage-based self-modifying alimony provision.

With a more traditional order setting out the amount he has to pay on a regular basis for a certain duration, the onus is on him to get out from under the order.  If you end up in court the judge can either attribute earnings to him or order him to get a job.

You could suggest if he wants to end alimony now, you would consider a lump sum buyout of his remaining alimony at the prior annual rate.  He would likely get a discount for paying it upfront – probably around 3% but you would then have a large guaranteed amount in hand.

If he plans to sell his house, he has an obvious place out of which to fund the buyout of your alimony.

Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com