Yes. However, should you?
Divorce is often the best of times and the worst of times at the same time. The turmoil of separating marital assets and deciding custody can take its toll. However, the excitement of the future outside a bad marriage is often exhilarating. That said, divorce is still emotionally taxing and financially hard. And, frankly, sometimes you do not get what you want at hearings and the case drags on and becomes a significant financial burden. It is at this time that all of this hardship leaves many litigants contemplating a change in counsel. This blog covers four ... Read More
Tag: counsel
19
Dec2019
20
Dec2018
The mere thought of a divorce is difficult for most of us. However, if you are going to divorce, picking the “right” divorce attorney for your case is the way to avoid wasting money and going through multiple attorneys because you are perpetually dissatisfied. Often, the “best” divorce attorney—who may have handled every case from international parental abduction to a multi-million-dollar marital estate—is not necessarily the “right” divorce attorney for you. Equally, the best divorce attorney by ranking or for your friend’s divorce may not be right for your case either. This blog focuses on 3 key or fundamental considerations ... 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 situation, such as the fact that sometimes life ... Read More
17
Oct2018
For most of us, it is easy to be prepared to go to a new doctor’s appointment. We generally know what the doctor wants to know (our medical history) and what brings us to the doctor in the first place (a routine checkup to a lingering pain or bump). On the other hand, most people really do not know what to expect when they first seek an attorney for an auto accident, divorce, or criminal matter. Just the thought of needing an attorney and making an appointment can be overwhelming and create anxiety. Know in an initial consult, the attorney ... Read More
03
Oct2018
When you are a party in civil litigation (you are suing or being sued), it is common to receive a subpoena for your deposition. This means your opponent is on a “fishing expedition” to find out everything you know about the issues involved in the case. This process is done before a court reporter and you are asked all sorts of questions. Depositions are different than testimony at trial since the opposing counsel can ask a much broader scope of questions at a deposition if they might lead to admissible evidence.1 Keep in mind that your deposition testimony can significantly ... Read More
11
Sep2018
No. Maybe. Even in today’s digital world, marital infidelity is difficult to define. Nevertheless, statistics show that “cheating” is one of the biggest factors in filing for divorce. Decades ago, the various states adopted the concept of no-fault divorce. This means if one party states the marriage is broken and wants a divorce, this is enough for the court to have jurisdiction over the matter. In the past, adultery or other wrongdoing was required; this is no longer the case.
There are now specific statutory reasons for a divorce under current Indiana law: irretrievable breakdown of the marriage; the conviction for ... Read More
22
May2018
While children are resilient and “bounce back”, modifying physical custody from one parent to another parent is a major life factor that may impact the child’s fundamental sense of safety, security, and stability. For this reason, there are two common factual situations where custody modification does not make a strong legal case.
The first is where the non-custodial parent’s life has improved, but this has had little impact on how the kids are doing in the custodial parent’s care. Remember, the legal focus for modification is on the children’s best interest. So, for instance, a parent who has achieved long-term sobriety ... Read More
04
Jan2018
Almost everyone knows someone who has been, is or will be going through a “terrible” custody battle. The best of parents—acting under the stress of a separation or divorce—experiences a range of emotions from loss to rage.
In some cases, the perceptions of the parents are magnified by underlying psychological issues, substance abuse or both and lead to the truly high-conflict custody case. While there is no legal definition for a high conflict custody case, they all share some of the same hallmark behaviors and incidents while (and after the case) pending, including:
claims of or actual domestic violence and/or criminal ... Read More
03
Jan2018
In criminal and domestic cases in particular, a litigant is often at his or her lowest point in life, facing a serious criminal charge or a messy and protracted divorce. The outcome of the case may shape their future. For this reason, most lawyers have encountered family and friends wanting to pitch-in to fund a proper case for a loved one. The question that arises is what are the ethical and practical limits to third-party payers. This is the focus of this blog post.
The first and sometimes hardest point for the client and his or her financial helper is to ... Read More