Adjusting alimony: Free advice for every situation

Questioner

LS, I have been divorced since September 2003. We had two children together. Through the intervention of a mediator it was agreed that based on my income and the income of my new partner the alimony payment had to be paid at 750 euros per month, namely 250 euros per child and 250 euros partner alimony. Over the years various things have changed: my ex-wife has since remarried. As a result the partner alimony has expired. My partner and I bought a house in 2005, which has caused our monthly expenses to increase considerably. It is also the case that I have been unemployed since January 2014 (through no fault of my own) and my monthly income is therefore about 900 euros less net. Due to this loss of income, we are no longer able to meet our monthly payment obligations, despite all the cutbacks that have been implemented, and the bottom of our 'reserve pot' has now been reached. Question: To what extent do I have a (reasonable) chance of an adjustment of the maintenance amount to be paid if I have a new means assessment carried out? NB my (money-hungry) ex-partner and her (even more money-hungry) husband intend to have my 18-year-old daughter pay board and lodging from her student grant in order to 'adjust' her monthly financial needs so that I also have to continue to pay alimony for her. Thank you in advance for your response.

Lawyer

It is always possible to have this assessment of the ability to pay calculated by a lawyer or family mediator and to request a nil or reduction of the alimony to be paid. If you would like help with this, I can advise you.

Questioner

Thank you very much for your offer. We will first try to find a solution together; we will have a conversation tonight. I initially made a proposal about an amount that we can currently 'miss' in order not to get into financial trouble ourselves. That was (of course) not received with enthusiasm. If the conversation tonight remains fruitless, I will probably accept your offer. Thank you in advance.

Lawyer

You can contact us by direct mail at that time.

Questioner

I thought it would be nice to tell you that we had a very constructive conversation and we agreed that, as long as our financial situation does not improve, we will adjust the alimony amount down to the amount I suggested earlier. This gives us a bit more 'room' to also buy new clothes ourselves or do fun things with the children.

Lawyer

That's great to hear.