If you pay alimony in New Jersey, retirement raises an understandable question: can you stop making payments once you stop working? If you receive alimony, the question is just as pressing: will the support you depend on end when your former spouse retires?
The published decision in Voynick v. Voynick, 481 N.J. Super. 207 (App. Div. 2025), explains why courts look at both parties’ finances when a paying spouse asks to modify or terminate alimony after retirement. For alimony agreements entered before September 10, 2014, the inquiry includes whether the recipient saved—or realistically could have saved—enough for retirement.
The decision provides a path to review an existing alimony obligation. It does not make termination automatic.
Voynick v. Voynick: A Retirement Application Under a Permanent Alimony Agreement
Here are the essential facts of Voynick: The parties divorced in 2003 after a lengthy marriage. Their settlement agreement required Mr. Voynick, a veterinarian, to pay $120,000 a year in permanent alimony.
After selling his veterinary practice and retiring, Mr. Voynick applied to terminate alimony. He argued that he had reached full retirement age and no longer had earned income. Ms. Voynick opposed the application, citing her expenses, health concerns, and continuing need for support. The trial court denied Mr. Voynick’s request, focusing heavily on his substantial assets and his failure to establish that he could no longer afford the payments.
The Appellate Division agreed that Mr. Voynick had not adequately demonstrated an inability to pay. Nevertheless, it required further proceedings because the trial court had not sufficiently examined Ms. Voynick’s retirement savings and continuing need for alimony. Read the court’s opinion.
How Courts Review Both Spouses’ Retirement Finances
A central lesson of Voynick is that a retirement application can warrant further review even when the payor has not established an inability to continue paying. The recipient’s financial disclosures or other evidence may show that the recipient:
- Saved enough for retirement to no longer need the existing level of alimony to maintain the marital standard of living; or
- Had the ability to save adequately and, had that occurred, would no longer need the existing level of support.
That requires a financial analysis. A retirement account balance alone does not answer whether someone can meet reasonable expenses over the remaining years of retirement. Likewise, a general statement that support remains necessary may not adequately explain why the recipient could not save. Where the evidence establishes the required initial showing and material facts remain disputed, discovery and a comprehensive testimonial hearing allow the court to examine those questions. The paying spouse still bears the ultimate burden of proving that a reduction or termination is warranted. Voynick, opinion at pages 27–34.
For the paying spouse, “I no longer receive a paycheck” may be an incomplete explanation of retirement finances. The analysis may include income available from assets that the law permits the court to consider, so the source and legal treatment of those assets matter: the statute excludes assets distributed at divorce when determining the payor’s ability to pay alimony after retirement. In Voynick, the court specifically identified shortcomings in Mr. Voynick’s presentation concerning exempt and nonexempt assets and potential income streams. A useful retirement application therefore needs more than a retirement date and a current bank balance. Voynick, opinion at pages 25–27.
Reviewing Your Settlement Agreement Before You File or Respond
The Voynicks’ agreement listed death and the wife’s remarriage as termination events. It also expressly stated that it did not contain an “anti-Lepis” clause—a provision restricting modification based on changed circumstances. Reading the agreement as a whole, the appellate court concluded that retirement could support an application to modify or terminate alimony even though retirement was not a listed termination event. A reference to “permanent alimony,” standing alone, does not resolve every future modification question. Voynick, opinion at pages 13–15.
Before making or responding to an application, gather the divorce agreement, relevant court orders, prior and current Case Information Statements, tax returns, retirement statements, and a realistic expense budget. For the payor, those documents help explain how retirement affects available income and support obligations. For the recipient, they help establish ongoing needs and the circumstances that affected the ability to save, including health expenses, employment opportunities, and other financial responsibilities.
Voynick required discovery and a hearing; it did not itself reduce or terminate Mr. Voynick’s alimony. Instead, the Appellate Division remanded the case back to the trial court to conduct the proceedings that would ultimately determine whether alimony would be terminated. For divorced spouses approaching retirement in Mercer, Middlesex, Hunterdon, and Somerset Counties—and throughout New Jersey—the practical lesson is to prepare a documented financial picture of both households and review the settlement terms before deciding what relief to request—or how to respond.
This is where having a qualified New Jersey family law attorney on your side is of critical importance. If you are paying alimony, you cannot simply file a motion to terminate alimony based upon your retirement and expect to win. Instead, your motion papers and supporting documentation must fully address the very important factors set forth in the statute. Similarly, if you are receiving alimony and faced with an application to terminate alimony, preparing a thorough opposition that addresses your circumstances will maximize your chances of success. The outcome of an application to terminate alimony on the basis of retirement is highly fact-sensitive, and a qualified family law attorney can present your case in a manner that maximizes your chances of success.
Matthew B. Lun, Esq. works with clients in Mercer, Middlesex, Hunterdon, and Somerset Counties. If you are planning for retirement or have received an application to modify alimony, contact us to discuss your options, including whether mediation can resolve the issue without a contested hearing.