Client sought assistance from Colburn Hintze Maletta (CHM Law) years after his divorce after his ex-spouse filed to have Client held in contempt for non-payment of spousal maintenance. The Parties’ Divorce Decree, which was entered long before CHM established a relationship with Client, obligated Client to pay more than six figures in non-modifiable spousal maintenance per year indefinitely.
In other words, when the Client came to CHM Law, he had an absolute obligation to pay his ex-wife more than $100,000.00 every year for the rest of his life—no matter what. Although most attorneys would have told the Client that his situation was hopeless (and to be fair, on paper, it was), CHM Law had the courage and ingenuity to envision and pursue settlement negotiations by leveraging certain practical realities and making impeccable litigation decisions.
As a result, CHM Law achieved a settlement on the Client’s behalf whereby in exchange for a lump sum payment that was less than the total amount of arrearages owed, the Opposing Party agreed to terminate spousal maintenance moving forward and waive all remaining arrearages.