The idea of cohabitation between partners has become more commonplace in the United States in the past several years. In some respects, an increase in cohabitation among romantic partners grew due to laws prohibiting same-sex couples from marrying. After same-sex marriage was validated across the United States, many couples elected to take advantage of their ability to marry under the law. However, this change does not mean that cohabitation among partners is now no longer prevalent in Indiana and across the US. It is!
Couples may cohabit for a variety of reasons – ... Read More
25
Feb2019
20
Feb2019
Four Critical Concepts for Post-Secondary Expenses
College costs and other post-secondary expenses continue to rise, and articles about these increasing costs and the growing debt that many students come out of college with are nearly everywhere you look. In fact, apart from buying a home, attending college or another type of post-secondary institution may be the biggest expense that one has in their life. Sometimes, the divorced parents of a child who plans on attending college or another post-secondary institution may have very different opinions about what they believe their respective roles should ... Read More
14
Feb2019
Custody disputes between a minor child’s parents, grandparents, relatives, and/or others in a minor child’s life can arise in a variety of different cases – marriage dissolutions (divorces), paternity cases, and guardianships are just a few. Other times, one of the parties involved in a child’s life may petition for a modification of custody under certain circumstances. The type of evidence that you may be required to present may be different depending on the type of case you are litigating and the current custody status of the minor child ... Read More
31
Jan2019
Whoever said “there is a fine line between love and hate” was on to something. Frequently, two people who were madly in love, somewhere stumbled and are now getting a divorce. As you may have already figured out, those loving days are gone, and not only are they gone, but that love has been replaced, in most cases, with resentment towards the other person. So, what do you do when you are going through a divorce? What shouldn’t you do? How do I act? How should I treat the other person? These ... Read More
24
Jan2019
One of the best ways to make the most of a divorce is to try to remove yourself from the emotion and clearly understand what you want, why, and if your legal desires are realistic. Divorce law is complex making this difficult. However, there are three pervasive myths about divorce law that have many litigants confused before they even consult with counsel. They are debunked and the focus of this blog.
The first myth is with property (e.g., stocks, bonds, cash, homes) that a party brought into the marriage. Indiana is a “one-pot ... Read More
16
Jan2019
Most of us will have multiple jobs during our work career. The days of starting, working for and retiring with a company are mostly past. For divorced parents or those who have children born outside of marriage, a move for a job, new relationship, or the myriad of reasons, the move is more complicated because of Indiana’s custody relocation status. This requires these parents to provide advance notice of relocation or face legal consequences from payment of legal fees to loss of custody. This blog ... Read More
15
Jan2019
Probably. Divorce is unique in civil suits because the parties likely will continue to know each other (particularly) if they have children and interact into the future. With a divorce if you lose custody, child support is wrong, or the property is not properly divided or completely divided, you need to appeal to protect your future rights. This blog explores why you should consider an appeal in divorce and paternity cases.
Where children are involved (divorce or paternity), if child custody is at issue, the parent ... Read More
08
Jan2019
Yes, in some cases. Nationally as well as in Indiana, grandparents are increasingly raising their adult children’s children. Sometimes this is just being great and helpful grandparents. In some cases, such as a parent going back to school or distant work relocation, parents must do so to better their lives, but in others, they do so for legally impermissible reasons, such as addiction issues; these parents simply leave their children with grandparents to raise. For all practical purposes, the grandparents take over the role of caregiver and provide all the support, shelter, ... Read More
06
Nov2018
With the Holiday Cheer often comes parenting time and other child-related disputes surrounding the holidays including Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s. To avoid some potential of dispute, we suggest you look at your most current custody order(s) and the Indiana Parenting Time Guidelines. With this, you can engage the other parent in a discussion and try to reach an agreement about who has what time and drop-offs and pick-up times and places well in advance. Try to account for foreseeable problems, such as bad weather or those that are unique in your ... Read More
26
Sep2018
Eventually, the “litigation” dust settles for most every acrimonious divorce or paternity fight over custody and the parents remain to co-parent. No longer are there attorneys or judges in the picture. Nevertheless, there is often lingering hostility that may become exacerbated by everything—including a new romantic interest. This dynamic often makes co-parenting what courts describe as a “battleground”. While there are numerous ways to address parenting-time conflicts that take time and cost money—such as contempt’s or parenting coordinators, this blog covers three common sense, but often ... Read More