Marriage Buyout

The Troubled Trajectory of U.S. Alimony Law

Inbunden, Engelska, 2014

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From divorce court to popular culture, alimonyis a dirty word. Unpopular and rarely ordered, the awards are frequentlyinconsistent and unpredictable. The institution itself is often viewed as anhistorical relic that harkens back to a gendered past in which women lacked theeconomic independence to free themselves from economic support by their spouses.In short, critics of alimony claim it has no place in contemporary visions ofmarriage as a partnership of equals. But as Cynthia Lee Starnes argues in TheMarriage Buyout, alimony is often the only practical tool for ensuring that divorce does not treattoday's primary caregivers as if they were suckers. Her solution is toradically reconceptualize alimony as a marriage buyout.Starnes's buyouts draw on a partnership model of marriage that reinforcescommunal norms of marriage, providing a gender-neutral alternative to alimonythat assumes equality in spousal contribution, responsibility, and right. Herquantification formulae support new default rules that make buyouts morecertain and predictable than their current alimony counterparts. Looking beyondalimony, Starnes outlines a new vision of marriages with children, describing aco-parenting partnership between committed couples, and the conceptual basisfor income sharing between divorced parents of minor children. Ultimately,under a partnership model, the focus of alimony is on gain rather than loss andequality rather than power: a spouse with disparately low earnings isn't asucker or a victim dependent on a fixed alimony payment, but rather an equalstakeholder in marriage who is entitled at divorce to share any gains themarriage produced.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2014-05-16
Mått152 x 229 x 23 mm
Vikt499 g
FormatInbunden
SpråkEngelska
SerieFamilies, Law, and Society
Antal sidor235
FörlagNew York University Press
ISBN9780814708248

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Familjerätt inom Juridik

Acknowledgments Introduction Part I. Alimony Reflections 1. Who Cares about Alimony? 2. Alimony's Heritage: The Helpless, the Blameless, and the Clean-Break Losers 3. Alimony and Mother Myths Part II. Alimony Mechanics 4. The Contemporary State of Alimony 5. Alimony in Context: A Comparative Perspective Part III. Alimony Theory6. Reasons Matter: Alimony, Intuition, and the Remarriage Termination Rule7. The Search for a Contemporary RationalePart IV: Alimony Reform8. A Marital Partnership Model: Alimony as Buyout9. Beyond Alimony: Lovers, Parents, and PartnersConclusionNotesIndexAbout the Author

"The Marriage Buyout is a comprehensive and thorough review of alimony's history, rationale, promises, and pitfalls. To solve the dilemmas of contemporary alimony law, the book advocates a pathbreaking solution that makes 'I do' really matter. Cynthia Lee Starnes is already widely recognized for her profound insights into alimony, and this book provides an even stronger basis for that reputation. Although the book is centered on alimony, Starnes applies her analytical lens to other issues that arise at the end of marriage, providing new insights into our entire system of divorce." - Naomi Cahn,Harold H. Greene Professor of Law, George Washington University Law School "The Marriage Buyout is an unusual book: it is both entertaining and profound. Professor Starnes has produced a readable and incisive critique of alimony law within the United States and elsewhere as well as a creative framework for reform. Law students and practicing lawyers will surely benefit from her careful exposition of competing approaches to alimony. Her proposed use of a partnership buyout model would take us a long way toward a coherent and fair theory of alimony. The book should be read, and read again, by any groups involved in family law reform." - Barbara A. Atwood,Mary Anne Richey Professor of Law Emerita, University of Arizona "Professor Starnes rigorously analyzes our outmoded, gender-imbalanced approach to the financial effects of marital, cohabitant and co-parental relationship dissolution. Her devastating analysis makes it clear that policymakers concerned about the well-being of all family members after divorce or separation should take heed of her courageous, well-grounded and clearsighted proposals to reconceptualize economic justice in the family." - Theresa Glennon,Temple University Beasley School of Law "Starnesprovides a historic overview of alimony, detailing its evolution, justification, and criticism overtime. The first part of the book reviews the history of alimony, grounded in old legal theories that the interests of women merged with their husbands and therefore the latter had a perpetual duty to support them. This section also discusses the decline of alimony with changes in marriage law in the 1970s and the many myths that surround spousal support. Parts 2 and 3 discuss how current alimony law operates and the crisis in theories justifying it. The last part of the book offers a new theory of alimony as a buyout for stay-at-home moms who have been partners in a marriage and who have forgone income in return for raising children. This delightfully written and informative book on an overlooked subject is suited for collections on family law, feminism, and gender politics.Summing Up: Highly Recommended." (Choice)