Collaborative divorce is a cooperative team approach to divorce that is gaining followers among the growing number of people who are seeking a more compassionate, less divisive alternative to the traditional adversarial approach to divorce. Rather than opposing each other in a courtroom where a judge determines how property and financial assets will be...
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“Bitter adversaries” is the presumed default setting for American divorce, yet many couples harbor no particular resentment toward each other when their marriage ends and would prefer to dissolve their union without rancor. Collaborative divorce offers couples the opportunity to end their marriage on their own terms and in their own way without adversarial...
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Resolving custody and visitation is the single most important issue in a or by a judge after trial. The overriding concern of the parents must be, and by a judge will be, what is in the child(ren)’s best interests. A parent must never evaluate their case by what is in their own best interests....
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Before Separation or Confrontation You must review a variety of documents with your attorney in order to evaluate your case, prepare yourself in advance of separation, prepare yourself to work toward a settlement, or prepare a suit for divorce. As a result, you must, at a minimum, obtain and retain the following documents in...
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Mental health issues may lead to divorce, or result from or be exacerbated by, separation and divorce. As with the other personal challenges described above, in order to work effectively with an attorney, manage one’s life, care for children, and prepare for settlement or trial, a person must be in the best mental health...
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A parent with anger management issues should seek competent evaluation and/or treatment immediately if friends, family, co-workers, or they themselves believe an anger management problem might exist. Anger management must be addressed and brought under control in custody/visitation cases. Anger control may develop or become worse as a result of the separation and divorce...
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Alcohol and drug abuse issues should be dealt with in the same manner as anger management. It is important to get treatment immediately if a party/parent is possibly addicted to alcohol or drugs. Alcohol and drug abuse will be a major hurtle for a parent to clear in any support, custody and/or visitation case....
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“Grounds for divorce” means a set of conditions a party must prove in court in order for a judge to grant a divorce. The most common of these grounds are the following: A mutual and voluntary separation which has lasted for at least a period of one year. The separation must have been made...
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In Maryland domestic violence is defined by statute as “abuse” which consists of any one or more of the following acts: One that causes serious bodily harm, One that places a person in fear of imminent serious bodily harm, An assault, A rape or attempted rape, False imprisonment, or Stalking. A document known as...
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The process to determine how to divide marital assets between parties can be, and often is, quite complex. It is not possible in this article to describe with particularity how various assets may be divided between parties in a divorce. However, there are some key points to bear in mind. It is common during...
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