How to Represent the Husband Against the Unemployed 'Disabled' Wife

be outlined in the divorce decree. Rather than direct payments, if the parties own a house, the court could award it to the wife and the mort gage indebtedness to the husband. Two important factors help to determine if an award constituting alimony or property should be sought. The first is the tax consequences. A property award is not tax able income to the recipient or deductible by the pay or; alimony, of course, is. (See 26 U.S.C. ? 71, ? 215.) Because the husband presumably will be in a higher tax bracket, an award of alimony may seem more attractive to him. He can afford to pay more alimony than if the award had been labeled property division. Because the award's net value will be reduced after taxes, the wife's lawyer must ensure that her ultimate award matches the percentage to which she is entitled. If instead of property, alimony is sought, the lawyers must consider the consequences if either party dies. A new requirement for alimony is that no liability for pay ment accrues after the death of the payee spouse. 26 I.R.C. ? 71(b)(1)(D). Thus, if a court provides that an alimony award will not terminate on the death of the payee spouse, as it did in the Gillette decision, posthu