One of the most frequent complaints I hear from family law litigants is the length of time it takes to finalize their divorce. Some of the fault for this complaint is institutional while a good deal of the time it takes to finalize a divorce is a result of each…
Last week, we wrote a post with some tips about child custody and international travel. This week, we will look a little more closely at the provisions in the Family Code that help the Court prevent international child abductions. Although the relevant provisions apply to domestic as well as international…
Divorce isn’t easy. People get angry or hurt, and emotions can cloud even the most intelligent person’s judgment. We’ve already written many blogs about the need to “play nice” in divorce proceedings, and the benefits of positive co-parenting, but one star’s recent divorce has hit our radar as a real-life…
Rabbi Mendel Epstein began a 10-year sentence on March 1st after being sentenced by a New York judge in December 2015 for kidnapping and torturing men into granting their wives religious divorces. This may sound a bit outrageous, but in order to understand the Rabbi’s crime, you must first understand…
This blog is a follow up to a previous blog titled “Should I go to Trial.” If you have not read that blog it is worth reading, and not just because I wrote. There are many factors you should discuss with your attorney before you go to trial. The two…
On March 7, 2016, the United States Supreme Court unanimously and summarily reversed the Alabama Supreme Court on a same-sex adoption issue. In the case, V.L. v. E.L., the parties were two women who were in a relationship from approximately 1995 until 2011. In 2002, E.L. gave birth to a…
Online dating is everywhere these days. As I hear more and more stories from friends and family members who meeting their significant others online; I receive a wedding invitation for my college roommate’s wedding to a man she met online; and my TV becomes increasingly flooded with eHarmony and Match.com…
Spend any time watching American television or movies and you will witness scenes filmed inside a Courtroom. Sometimes they are filmed in a soundstage and other times in an actual Courtroom. No matter the location they convey the same message. Everything else failed in a case and now it is…
According to section 215 of the Internal Revenue Code, spousal support (otherwise known as alimony) is generally taxable income to the payee and tax deductible to the payor. However, if payors aren’t careful, they may inadvertently agree to support arrangements that are not deductible. Retroactive Support In California, the Court…
One of the first things you’ll see on the Family Law Summons is the Automatic Temporary Restraining Orders (called “ATROS”). These orders issue automatically upon the filing and service of the Petition. One of the ATROS states that neither parent is allowed to take the children out of the State…