Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland

Re: Change in use and possession of marital property after a divorce

The court has no authority to modify the terms of the divorce, except for custody, visitation and child support, after thirty days past the date of the judgment. Your best bet is to try to reach an agreement with your ex, if you have a good enough relationship with him or her to do that. You might point out that if you are paying the mortgage for the three years, you will increase the equity and benefit him/her. If your ex is counting on receiving proceeds of the sale within the year, you had better be prepared for a refusal or the need to do some smart bargaining.

Re: Change in use and possession of marital property after a divorce

The joint custody order was granted based on the agreement reached between you and your ex-husband. Much of your question depends on the language of your agreement. An attorney's analysis of your agreement is critical. There are several matters that come into question, for example, was it you or was it your ex that had the agreement drafted? And is there any ambiguity over the provision or a conflicting provision?

Other possibilities exist with re-negotiating an agreement on the matter. Although it may be likely that there is not a material change to modify the support agreement if such matter were brought to court, there are potential negotiation strategies to enable a resolution. My initial question, if you choose for me to advocate for you, is why he wants to push sale of the family home. Is his financial need so great that he will sacrifice the benefits to his child? Alternatively, would you be willing to pursue a precisely drafted legal agreement that enables him to take the equity that would be gained over the next three years?

Typically, tax ramifications come into play. Living expenses and salaries may increase causing a change in child support orders that were previously granted in your favor. However, this is not likely since your agreement was recently incorporated into a decree. An attorney's assistance may be beneficial to identify leverage to acquire an agreement.

Other questions are: What has changed since the time that you entered into the agreement? Is there a disturbance that will seriously affect a minor child?

Feel free to contact me to pursue an agreement or modification to the prior order. Contact me at (410) 799-9002 or e-mail me at [email protected].

G. Joseph Holthaus III

Re: Change in use and possession of marital property after a divorce

You'll have to get your ex to agree to the change in order to accomplish what you want. The agreement, which is now part of the judgment of divorce, probably has a clause that says that it is nonmodifiable by a court. This would not apply to getting the amount of child support he pays increased if you can demonstrate a change in circumstances, but it would cover the agreement regarding sale of the home. However, if by virtue of selling the home, as well as assuming full physical custody of your daughter, you would experience a significant increase in living expenses, you may be eligible for child support modification. If your ex is made aware of this possibility, he may be willing to extend your possession of the marital residence, especially since you're willing to increase his equity at no expense to him. Not to mention the fact that it would be in the best interest of his children to do so.