Category: Family Law

Can Loans Made To Divorcing Parties By Their Family Or Friends Be Recovered In A Divorce Proceeding

25

Sep2020

Can Loans Made To Divorcing Parties By Their Family Or Friends Be Recovered In A Divorce Proceeding?

/ Family Law, Division of Assets, Divorce
In today’s world, it is somewhat common to have monies provided to newlyweds by their parents to assist with the purchase of a home, car, rent or for other expenses, particularly when grandchildren come along. Ultimately, if the parties divorce, can a creditor parent recover this money? What is the burden of proof? What does a creditor parent need to do? What protections are there in the law for a creditor parent? While they obvious answer may seem like “yes”, a creditor parent gets his/her money back, that is often not the case. This blog explores how a creditor parent ... Read More
September 25, 2020CD
Six Mistakes To Avoid When You Get Divorced

23

Sep2020

Six Mistakes To Avoid When You Get Divorced

/ Family Law, Divorce
For many couples, divorce is a long, arduous journey. Finally getting the divorce decree marks the end of the road for a broken relationship and opens the door to a world of new possibilities. That said, the actual divorce decree may still leave many legal details to be attended to or a party is placed in substantial risk in the weeks, months, and even years to come. This blog looks at five mistake that are commonly made when a divorce decree is entered—don’t let this be your case. Designation of Beneficiary Status: A designation of a beneficiary is a person named ... Read More
September 23, 2020CD
What You Need To Know About Emancipation And Child Support Obligations

18

Sep2020

What You Need To Know About Emancipation And Child Support Obligations

/ Family Law, Child Support, Emancipation
In Indiana, a child is considered emancipated at the age of 19 by operation of law. Therefore, emancipation eliminates a parent’s duty to pay child support for the child, and in most cases, a parent’s other support obligations to their children terminates at the age of 19. However, there are key exceptions to this rule that are covered in this blog. “By Operation of Statute.” The first thing to know about emancipation is that, in most cases, it occurs “by operation of statute.” To expand, a child’s emancipation is governed by statutory code. Pursuant to the relevant statutory code section, a ... Read More
September 18, 2020CD
Help! What Are My Rights To My Child That Was Born During My Same-Sex Marriage

17

Sep2020

Help! What Are My Rights To My Child That Was Born During My Same-Sex Marriage?

/ Family Law, Child Custody, Same Sex Marriage
Ever since the United States Supreme Court determined that state bans on same-sex marriage were unconstitutional,1 the legal landscape has seen numerous changes regarding same-sex individual’s legal rights in divorces and ancillary matters flowing out of the divorce, such as division of property. One of the biggest changes that has occurred is the legal rights an individual has to a child born during the marriage. So, you may be wondering, what are my rights to my child born during my same-sex marriage? In this blog, we try to answer that question, as well as provide general information on an individual’s rights ... Read More
September 17, 2020CD
How The Stay-At-Home Parent Can Get A Fair Shake In A Divorce

11

Sep2020

How The Stay-At-Home Parent Can Get A Fair Shake In A Divorce

/ Family Law, Division of Assets, Divorce
Each of us knows a parent who has given up his or her career to raise their children. Most of us know an empty nest couple who were so focused on the kids, they later realized they have nothing in common when the children leave. This is when the “D” word comes up: Divorce. Additionally, most of readers know that in divorce in Indiana, the courts normally divide the marital estate 50/50. Where a parent is far advanced and in a company and earning a great living, it is difficult to imagine how an equal division is fair to the ... Read More
September 11, 2020CD
How Does The Divorce Court Value And Divide Our Marital Estate If We Have Been Physically Separated For A While

10

Sep2020

How Does The Divorce Court Value And Divide Our Marital Estate If We Have Been Physically Separated For A While?

/ Family Law, Division of Assets, Divorce
There are many times couples physically separate but continue to stay married. There are a variety of reasons this occurs. For instance, maybe one spouse has a chronic medical condition and would lose health care coverage he or she has under the other spouse’s group medical plan upon divorce. However, in most cases, there comes a time when a party who has been separated for a time from their spouse wants a divorce to move on (perhaps with a new romantic interest). This raises a profound question. What is in the marital pot for the court to divide? Is it ... Read More
September 10, 2020CD
What Can A Court Do About Parental Alienation In Custody Proceedings?

04

Sep2020

What Can A Court Do About Parental Alienation In Custody Proceedings?

/ Family Law, Child Custody
Parental alienation is just what it claims to be.1 It is a parent (usually the custodial parent if the parties are divorced or the child is born out of wedlock) who engages in a systematic campaign to denigrate the other parent and make the child(ren) of the parties afraid of the other parent. Unfortunately, with children of a young age, they may be more than just conditioned to be afraid of the alienated parent, but they may come to have false memories of some bad act or event caused by the alienated parent. How this plays into a contested custody ... Read More
September 4, 2020CD
What Happens In A Divorce Case If My Spouse Wasted Our Money

03

Sep2020

What Happens In A Divorce Case If My Spouse Wasted Our Money?

/ Family Law, Division of Assets, Divorce
With divorce on the rise due to the COVID-19 virus and spouses being stuck at home with each other, many have learned aspects of their marriage they never knew before—such as a partner’s drinking problem, on-line gambling habit, or shopping addiction. Most lawyers have had such cases where such addictions, drugs in particular, have literally bankrupted the parties. The question is, what type of relief is there for the innocent spouse to recover wasted and squandered marital assets? This is called “marital dissipation” in legal terms. This blog covers what you need to know if you are in this situation ... Read More
September 3, 2020CD
Four Things You Must Know About A Custody Evaluation

28

Aug2020

Three Things You Must Know About A Custody Evaluation

/ Family Law, Custody Evaluation
In today’s world, busy courts have limited time to hear cases. The average case load in Indiana, that most judges manage, is in the thousands. In divorce and paternity cases, these judges have to decide child physical and legal custody, in the children’s best interests. Due to the fact many custody disputes have significant amounts of data relevant to the case and the children’s best interests, in many cases, the parties will elect to have a forensic child clinical psychologist appointed to make a custody evaluation report to the court. This single document, in many cases, eliminates the need for ... Read More
August 28, 2020CD
Four Things You Should Know About Divorce Preliminary Hearings

27

Aug2020

Four Things You Should Know About Divorce Preliminary Hearings

/ Family Law, Divorce
After one party files for divorce, what happens next? By statute, sixty (60) days must pass before the court can enter a divorce decree. A divorce is often a complex financial transaction separating the parties’ assets and an emotional one involving child custody and support. Most divorces take at least a few months to finalize. During this time, many parties cannot agree on who will live in the marital residence, how they will share the children, what car each will drive and who will pay what bills. In these cases, typically one party will move the court to set a ... Read More
August 27, 2020CD