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EJLE
Guest
I am currently negotiating with my wife an amicable (sometimes) divorce after 9 years of marriage. We agree on most things - she gets the house and the majority of the household possessions so as to not disrupt the living environment for the children, I will pay for health insurance for her (until she is working) and the children (indefinitely), I will pay for private school (which our 6 year old started this year and our 3 year old will start next year), we will split the current value of the retirement funds, and we will split our current credit card balance while I will be responsible for my student loans. Of course child support is mandated and agreed upon. Where we don't agree is on maintenance. She wants 50% of my gross income for 5 years with a sliding scale for 5 years after that. My feeling is that I have already agreed to give her the majority of the marital property as well as providing for private schooling and health insurance, therefore that I shouldn't have to give 50% of what I make on top of that. Instead I would propose 30-40% over 2-3 years until our youngest child is of school age and my wife can resume work, with a 2-3 year sliding scale after that. As added information, she is an attorney, who worked for 5 years of the marriage but has spent the last 2.5 years at home (partly of choice, but partly because a move to another state did not allow her to practice without taking the state bar again. We are now back in our home state where she is licensed to practice.) At this point she says she needs the five years because of our youngest child (which I agree with for 2-3 years) and because she is no longer marketable as an attorney, having been away for almost three years (which I don't agree with since she has kept her license, CLE's and has already had several job offers since we have moved back 9 months ago). Another reason that my wife gives for her need for support is that I am a physician just out of training whose salary has doubled since starting practice, and my wife claims that this increase lifestyle that we have shared for 9 months of our 9 year marriage is what she has become accustomed to. Can you give any advice to me? I really don't want to be unfair to my wife, but I also don't want to get taken to the cleaners either. Thanks in advance.
EJLE
EJLE