Divorce
Why Legal Help is Necessary When Handling Divorce Papers
Filing for annulment, going through legal separation, or getting a divorce is emotionally draining. Whether you have no children or have several, opting for the dissolution of a marriage and getting divorced from your spouse is not easy. More than the necessary filing fees, court fees, and attorney fees, what divorcing parties have…
Read MoreBad Legal Advice: taking advice from friends, relatives & coworkers vs. taking advice of a lawyer
Over on my How to Use a Lawyer blog, I posted a blog with the title above. For some reason, this seems to continue to happen all the time, but especially in family law matters, where everyone else seems to know better.
Read MoreThe connection between child support and visitation/parent time: there is none
In Utah, as I imagine it is in most states, child support and visitation are not connected. In other words, just because a parent doesn’t pay court-ordered child support doesn’t mean the non-paying parent doesn’t get visitation with the children. In other words, not receiving child support that you are owed is not a legal…
Read MoreUtah Divorce 90 Day Waiting Period Loophole Closed
In the 2012 legislative session, the Utah legislature passed a law that closed the loophole to the 90 day waiting period to obtain a divorce. The law for some time has been that there is a 90 day waiting period from the date of filing a divorce to the date the divorce can be granted.…
Read MoreWhy mediations fail
I was attending a continuing legal education seminar the other day entitled, “Domestic Mediation: Who, What, Where, When, Why?,” presented by a local attorney master mediator whom I really respect. One of the topics covered was the question, “Why Mediations Fail?” Here are the points that were made: The parties are not yet ready to…
Read MoreMediation requires full disclosure
Today I represented a client at mediation. The mediation did not result in a negotiated agreement that resolved the case. The mediator did a fine job. So why didn’t the case get resolved? The obvious, broad answer is that the parties were unable to reach a compromise, so the real underlying question is, what kept…
Read MoreHow to pay child support
Here is a problem we run into all the time: a parent pays the other parent child support with cash, in kind (with stuff like groceries, diapers, etc.) or a check without noting it is “child support.” Why is this a problem? Because if the receiving spouse then goes to the court or the Office of Recovery…
Read MoreWhy mediation works
Mediation is generally very successful in family law cases. It provides a safe forum for people to sit down and communicate respectfully regarding their concerns and desires, as well as to have their reality challenged if they are a bit off. The setting is confidential, so nothing that is said in mediation can be used…
Read MoreCrazy making behavior
In our community of family law practitioners, we have heard some local mental health treatment providers use the phrase, “crazy making behavior.” This phrase specifically refers to people who engage in behaviors that make you want to go crazy because they don’t make sense, they are irrational, etc. There are many reasons that a party…
Read More“I don’t understand zero”
There is a saying going around our community of family law practitioners that was started by a domestic commissioner here, “I don’t understand zero.” A parent will be hauled into court for failure to pay child support. The parent will say that they have lost their job, or their income has been reduced for some…
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