Custody, in general, means the care and keeping of something. It usually refers to physical care and control of that thing. For example, you might say that assets in a trust are in the custody of the trustee or an inmate in a county jail is in the custody of the Sheriff. When referring to a child, custody means the person who makes decisions for the child and with whom the child resides. When parents separate, decisions must be made about where the child will reside and how major, non-emergency decisions (such as where the child will attend school, his religious upbringing, extracurricular activities and medical care) will be made. In a perfect world, the parents will agree upon custody of their child. However, if they disagree, the court must…Read More
Updated: Mar 12, 2018 Mediation is a method of resolving a dispute. Litigation (going to court) is another method of resolving a dispute. Mediation falls under the category of alternative dispute resolution because it is an alternative to litigation. Mediation is a voluntary method of resolving a dispute. You may be ordered to go to mediation but the mediator won't force you to agree to anything. At most, he will try to persuade you to agree; he can't make you. Mediation is also private. What is said in mediation, stays in mediation. Neither party is allowed to testify about it if mediation fails and the case goes to court. There are exceptions, however. For example, if you threaten the other party or there is evidence of child abuse, the mediator…Read More
Updated: Mar 20, 2018 Service of process is how we formally notify a party that a lawsuit is pending that affects him by delivering papers on that party. It is required for the court to have jurisdiction over the party being served and to give him notice of the case. The case cannot go forward if there is no service of process. But what if you don’t know the whereabouts of the other party to your lawsuit? Service by publication is a method for serving process on someone you can’t find. It could be that the person is hiding or has simply moved away. Either way, we must make a reasonable effort to find the person before we can employ service by publication. This is often called “diligent efforts.” If…Read More
Updated: Mar 12, 2018 Mary and Bill recently divorced. Their divorce decree stated that Bill would pay the balances on their three joint credit card accounts. Months later, after Bill neglected to pay off these accounts, all three creditors contacted Mary for payment. She referred them to the divorce decree, insisting that she was not responsible for the accounts. The creditors correctly stated that they were not parties to the decree and that Mary was still legally responsible for paying off the couple's joint accounts. Mary later found out that the late payments appeared on her credit report. If you've recently been through a divorce - or are contemplating one - you may want to look closely at issues involving credit. Understanding the different kinds of credit accounts opened during…Read More
Updated: Mar 12, 2018 If you plan to change your name as part of the divorce process, there are a few things you should know. First: Make sure the divorce decree includes the order changing your name. Second: Get a certified copy of the divorce decree. This may be required at your motor vehicles department. Third: Go to your motor vehicles department to change your name first is a good idea. Social security won't change your name until you have a new driver's license. Be sure to check your state's motor vehicles department website for required documents to change your driver's license. Fourth: See https://faq.ssa.gov/ics/support/kbanswer.asp?QuestionID=3749 for information on changing your name with Social Security. Fifth: Don't forget to change your name with your bank, insurance company, employer and credit cards.…Read More
Updated: Mar 12, 2018 Parenting after divorce is extremely difficult. You are faced with learning how to work together with an ex-spouse who may be hostile, hurt, manipulative, etc. But you have to find a way to manage for the benefit of your child. In addition, you are faced with a child who may be feeling scared, guilty, or angry and may also be manipulative. In this environment, it is important to choose carefully what issues are important enough to risk conflict. Peace is important but not the only factor. Some issues are worth a battle. For example, where your child is going to go to school or his religious upbringing. Other issues are not worth the battle, such as who gets the child's hair cut or whether the other…Read More
