MA S1236

Summary of S.1236: An Act to Protect Survivors of Spousal Abuse from Alimony Liability

• Courts shall deny alimony to any spouse with a conviction of abuse, which includes attempts to cause physical harm, causing serious physical harm, placing a spouse in fear of imminent harm, or causing involuntary sexual relations by force, threat, or duress

• All forms of alimony—general term, rehabilitative, reimbursement, and transitional—must be terminated if the receiving spouse has an abuse conviction

• Abuse survivors who previously paid alimony to a convicted abusive spouse may petition the court to terminate existing alimony agreements and contracts

• Ex parte protective orders under Chapter 209A would become admissible as evidence of abuse patterns in alimony determinations, removing current statutory language that prevents such use

• Gender-neutral language changes replace "him" with "party" in relevant statutes; the act takes effect upon passage and preserves parties' rights to hearings under domestic relations procedure