Practical perspectives for contemporary legal challenges.
The Coronavirus has upended long-standing post marriage relationships for a number of people. Parenting plans have been rendered impossible by quarantine and other mandates; well-established financial security has given way to the largest number of unemployed Americans since the Great Depression; and the ability to pay for the home one rents or owns has become …
Continue reading “Do I Need a Pandemic Clause in my Divorce Documents?”
Many people understand the difficult decisions and tough times the divorce process can bring. Problems after divorce, however, are often given less consideration. A common quandary with post-divorce parents is how to handle a sad child during drop off with the other parent. Often times, one parent will attribute the sadness to perceived deficiencies in …
Continue reading “How Do I Handle a Sad Child During Drop Off?”
While it may not have been easy, it was at least tolerable for a few weeks sheltering in place with your spouse in the middle of your divorce. However, as the shelter in place orders have extended in many cases into May, it has become more difficult and hard to see the light at the …
Continue reading “7 Tips for Sheltering in Place With Your Spouse During a Divorce”
The Coronavirus has affected the lives of virtually every routine social interaction. Millions have lost jobs or are facing an uncertain financial future. The virus’s ravages have also spread into the family law arena. Long-standing custody agreements are suddenly unraveling and, simultaneously, many of the courts are not open to address the new and unforeseen …
One of the most common question family law attorneys have been receiving is whether parents who live separate and apart must still comply with parenting orders during the pandemic. The short answer, even before most states and counties announced guidelines, is yes. Many states and counties now have specific guidelines regarding custody orders and you …
Continue reading “Parenting Plans During a Pandemic: 5 Tips for Complying with Parenting Orders”
You were finally just about ready to make that appointment with a lawyer to discuss the possibility of a divorce from your spouse and then the world seemed to change overnight as COVID-19 (the coronavirus) took center stage on world news. Now what? With law offices working remotely, courts reducing schedules, custody evaluators conducting teleconferences …
Continue reading “Can I Still Get a Divorce During a Pandemic?”
In over thirty years of practicing law, I have seen many surprising things. One of the most unexpected to many, however, is how many people find themselves going through bouts of sadness, or even depression, about ending a very unhappy marriage. I have had both men and women burst into tears after the court hearing, …
Continue reading “I Am Unhappy in My Marriage, So Why Am I Sad About My Divorce?”
Most people understand that the divorce process can be very traumatic. Divorce involves some of the most important aspects of a person’s life: an unwinding of a commitment to another person for life, a person’s finances and, if they have them, what may be the most important thing in someone’s life, their children. While the …
You have hundreds of text messages between you and the other parent. You hand them all over to your lawyer, expecting the lawyer to be ecstatic that you can show every cancellation of parenting time, refusal to take the child to the doctor when sick, and general uncooperativeness. Yet, after pouring through them the attorney …
Continue reading “Three Ways to Make Text Messages Useful in Custody Cases”
In Arizona, a child can decide which parent to live with after their parent’s divorce only when the child reaches his or her 18th birthday. At this age, when the child is no longer a minor, the Court loses jurisdiction over the child for purposes of determining legal decision-making (custody) and parenting time. Until this age, …
Continue reading “When Can My Child Decide Which Parent to Live With After the Divorce?”