A Police Report If you call the police for a domestic dispute, the police will arrive and likely take a report of what happened. They will interview you, your spouse, and any other witnesses to the disturbance. These interviews are usually conducted separately so that neither party can corroborate each…
When You’re Legally the Child’s Parent Your ability to get custody of a stepchild would largely depend on whether or not you’re legally the child’s parent. In most cases, stepparents are not legally considered to be a child’s parents. Per the law, a child can only have two legal parents….
Who Gets to Decide Childcare Arrangements? Generally speaking, the parent who has legal custody will be able to decide the ongoing childcare arrangements. Legal custody refers to the ability to make decisions about the child’s life: where they’ll live, where they’re going to attend school, what medical care they’ll receive,…
Domestic Violence Defined Domestic violence can be difficult to define because there are so many behaviors that could be considered to be domestic violence, and it isn’t necessary for any of these behaviors to lead the victim to the ER for them to be considered to be domestic violence. Threatening…
Parents’ Rights Generally speaking, parents have a right to raise their children in whatever manner they see fit. Although these rights do vary from state to state, they are, more or less, very extensive. In America, the government does not want to get too involved in a child’s upbringing, therefore,…
The Definition Unjust enrichment is a very broad legal concept that can be important to many different practice areas, not just family law. Simply put, unjust enrichment occurs when one party benefits at the expense of the other. Typically, this occurs by circumstances; it’s not typically as if the beneficiary…
Consider Marriage In some situations, it may be in your best interests to get married before the baby’s born, especially if you are already committed to the mother and you both want to be involved in the baby’s life. Marriage will likely be the most effective way to ensure that…
Five Ways to Keep Inheritance Separate Put Cash in a Separate Account If you inherit cash, or if you sell the assets you inherit for cash, you may want to consider putting the resulting cash in a separate account, preferably one that your spouse does not have access to. Your…
Technically Speaking… If your divorce has already been finalized, and you have a joint account that’s still open, you will need to look at your decree to figure out how the funds in that account were awarded. If there is no mention of the account in your decree, you may…
Legal Custody Legal custody generally refers to the ability to make decisions about the child’s life, including where they go to school, where they live, which medical treatments (mental health treatments included) they’ll have, and more. Most couples share legal custody, as that is almost always in the best interests…
How to Survive and Thrive When Your Marriage Ends