{"product_id":"the-marriage-buyout-the-troubled-trajectory-of-us-alimony-law-9780814708248","title":"The Marriage Buyout: The Troubled Trajectory of U.S. Alimony Law","description":"\u003cp\u003eFrom divorce court to popular culture, alimony\u003cbr\u003eis a dirty word. Unpopular and rarely ordered, the awards are frequently\u003cbr\u003einconsistent and unpredictable. The institution itself is often viewed as an\u003cbr\u003ehistorical relic that harkens back to a gendered past in which women lacked the\u003cbr\u003eeconomic independence to free themselves from economic support by their spouses.\u003cbr\u003eIn short, critics of alimony claim it has no place in contemporary visions of\u003cbr\u003emarriage as a partnership of equals. But as Cynthia Lee Starnes argues in The\u003cbr\u003eMarriage Buyout, alimony is often the only practical tool for ensuring that divorce does not treat\u003cbr\u003etoday's primary caregivers as if they were suckers. Her solution is to\u003cbr\u003eradically reconceptualize alimony as a marriage buyout. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eStarnes's buyouts draw on a partnership model of marriage that reinforces\u003cbr\u003ecommunal norms of marriage, providing a gender-neutral alternative to alimony\u003cbr\u003ethat assumes equality in spousal contribution, responsibility, and right. Her\u003cbr\u003equantification formulae support new default rules that make buyouts more\u003cbr\u003ecertain and predictable than their current alimony counterparts. Looking beyond\u003cbr\u003ealimony, Starnes outlines a new vision of marriages with children, describing a\u003cbr\u003eco-parenting partnership between committed couples, and the conceptual basis\u003cbr\u003efor income sharing between divorced parents of minor children. Ultimately, \u003cbr\u003eunder a partnership model, the focus of alimony is on gain rather than loss and\u003cbr\u003eequality rather than power: a spouse with disparately low earnings isn't a\u003cbr\u003esucker or a victim dependent on a fixed alimony payment, but rather an equal\u003cbr\u003estakeholder in marriage who is entitled at divorce to share any gains the\u003cbr\u003emarriage produced.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Cynthia Lee Starnes\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e New York University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/16\/2014\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 235\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.11lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.29h x 6.33w x 0.96d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780814708248\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/01\/2014 pg. 705\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eStarnes, Cynthia Lee:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cb\u003eCynthia Lee Starnes\u003c\/b\u003e is The John F. Schaefer Chair in Matrimonial Law at Michigan State University College of Law.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"New York University Press","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":40180713128051,"sku":"9.78E+12","price":50.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/products\/img_e56bb768-1591-4642-8484-518025a738e1.jpg?v=1655472703","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/products\/the-marriage-buyout-the-troubled-trajectory-of-us-alimony-law-9780814708248","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}