At the time of your divorce case, you may have been a practicing medical professional in New York State who was making an impressive salary. With this, the family court may have ordered you to make monthly alimony payments to your former spouse. But now, you may have lost your medical license after being found guilty of medical misconduct. So, with such a significant drop in income, you may wonder whether your alimony order still stands. Well, please read on to discover whether you must continue making alimony payments even after losing your medical license and how one of the seasoned New York physician defense lawyers at Walker Medical Law can help you stay in the court’s favor.
Do I still have to make alimony payments after losing my medical license?
In short, your obligation to make monthly alimony payments to your former spouse does not end when you lose your medical license. This is because losing your job is considered a separate circumstance from your former spouse requiring financial support.
The only way you may attempt to minimize or eliminate the amount you pay in alimony is by filing a formal petition for a post-judgment modification with the New York State family court that handled your divorce case. Here, you may argue that your income stream has significantly dropped, and therefore you require modifications to your alimony payments. However, you must understand that it is rather unlikely that the court will grant you this order if you lose your medical license due to a guilty verdict for medical misconduct. This is because they find your income change as a result of your irresponsibility as invalid grounds.
While it may be difficult to keep up with alimony without your medical job, you must make your best efforts. This is because, if you fall behind or stop paying outright, you may be held in contempt of court. This may come with the family court ordering you to pay hefty fines and serve considerable jail time, in addition to such penalties you may have been charged with in your medical misconduct case.
What are the other potential financial effects of losing my medical license?
Struggling to meet your alimony obligation may be the tip of the iceberg when it comes to financial struggles after losing your medical license. Additional financial effects you may face are as follows:
- You may struggle to pay off your remaining student loans from medical school.
- You may struggle to pay the fines you were charged in your criminal court case.
- You may struggle to pay compensatory damages to the plaintiff of a medical malpractice claim.
- You may struggle to pay for the continuing medical education courses necessary to reinstate your medical license.
This is why you must fight to keep your medical license in effect in the first place. In conclusion, you should know that one of the competent New York physician defense lawyers is here to assist you with whatever your legal issue may be. So please reach out to us at Walker Medical Law today.
