Oh, yes, and the dog.
Although disagreement over pet custody or other animal-related matters is not something that frequently brings divorce settlement discussions to a grinding halt, issues relating to a loved family pet do surface with some regularity at such a time. There is no question that pets are deeply loved in millions of American households, and feelings of angst, fear, guilt, separation anxiety and other emotions sometimes rise to the surface during a time that can already be unduly sensitive and emotional.
]]> One certified mediator with a special focus on helping to forge agreements concerning pets says that she once received a call from an attorney who had carefully worked out a high-asset divorce settlement only to see it threatened at virtually the last minute. The reason: the husband's stress caused by anxiety that he would lose contact with the animal.Most judges will not entertain motions concerning family pets or get involved with the details of who gets to be with the dog, cat, horse or other animal and when. There is literally centuries of common law precedent that firmly regards animals as property.
More judges are stepping in with opinions and orders, though, and an experienced family law attorney with tact and a depth of divorce-related knowledge can often help resolve animal-related issues that feature in a divorce.
And a mediator, of course, can be found to facilitate a compromise when there is a conflict involving a pet. Some mediators say that a couple simply having a rational discussion, with each hearing the other out, can often bring about a sensible solution regarding a pet.
Source: Wall Street Journal, "A dog's bark is better than litigation's bite," Veronica Dagher, April 30, 2012
]]>In the case of Francois-Henri Pinault and Linda Evangelista, it concerned, instead, child support for their young son.
]]> Pinault, 49, is the head of a family-run global business conglomerate headquartered in France that includes luxury-goods companies such as Gucci and Yves St. Laurent. His family fortune is estimated at around $13 billion, and he makes an annual salary of several million dollars. Evangelista, 46, has been a fashion icon for more than two decades and is still a central figure in the modeling industry.The couple was briefly together several years ago and had a son, "Augie," who is now five. They never married, and Evangelista took care of the boy's financial needs by herself, until -- as she told a New York court last week -- the $46,000 a month she needed to spend on bodyguards, a nanny and related matters grew to be an untenable outlay.
A spokesman for Pinault stated prior to the couple's court date last week that, while Pinault was amenable to paying child support, the amount requested by Evangelista was "ridiculous."
After two days of testimony, the couple announced that they had reached agreement on all support matters.
The details of their settlement will likely never be known by the public. The magistrate handling their case approved the confidential agreement and sealed it from public view.
Source: CBS News, "Linda Evangelista and Francois-Henri Pinault's deal gets judge's OK," May 9, 2012
]]>With such gadgets so widely available, and at a low price in many cases, it is relatively easy for divorcing spouses to turn to such tactics to gain leverage against their soon-to-be ex.
]]> One such example concerned a man who found a recording device sewn into his young son's jeans. Outraged over the surveillance tactics, he filed a lawsuit against his ex for violating federal wiretap laws. The recordings had covered a range of conversations, including those with attorneys, therapists and other people with close relations to the families. The conversations also covered child custody and child support discussions.According to experts, it is easiest to prove criminal violations by claiming an invasion of privacy. And the results can take a bite out of the spying party's property division efforts, in some cases resulting in substantial payments for damages.
The development underscores the importance of some Georgia couples to be wary of spying tactics in this day and age. Because anything you do or say could be recorded at any time, it is important to monitor how you act and speak even when you believe you are alone.
Spying, though, is illegal, and if you suspect such actions on the part of your ex-spouse, discuss the possibility and your suspicions with your lawyer to determine an appropriate course of action.
Source: Chron.com, "Spy gadgets infiltrate divorces as domestic snooping booms," Mike Tolson, April 29, 2012
]]>The venue for doing so is called a "divorce auction," and one auctioneer says that it is somewhat common, even if not typically advertised as such.
"What else do you call it, though?" he asks. "That's what it is."
]]> And it is apparently catching on in areas around the country as a quick and convenient method of property division, especially when other methods -- such as a couple simply listing assets and reaching agreement on who gets what -- are bogging down or simply unworkable."Auctions are just auctions," said one person recently examining the merchandise of a divorced couple in Colorado during a lively sale there. That event drew a large crowd, and its auctioneer says that such sales often draw as many as 600 or more people.
He also says that divorce auctions are increasing in simply the same fashion as are other auctions, given the public's suddenly strong interest in television shows that feature auctions and make them seem attractive.
And the auctioneer - OJ Pratt of Longmont, Colorado - seeks to quickly dispel the notion that a divorcing couple can't get top dollar for their assets at an auction sale. Pratt says that, with hundreds of people potentially competing for an item in open and competitive bidding, the sales price can be high. He says he recently sold a couple's house for $40,000 more than comparable homes in the area.
Source: Longmont Daily Times, "Some divorcing couples auction everything off and divide the cash," Aimee Heckel, April 28, 2012
]]>It is also a story about an unmarried father who asserted his rights immediately after his daughter was born four and a half years ago and hasn't stopped trying to be a central figure in her life since.
]]> Rob Manzanares never married the woman with whom he had the child, but he signed up with a state registry to assert his custodial rights after her birth, a legal requirement for unmarried fathers in Colorado.The mother subsequently took the child to neighboring Utah, where the baby was adopted by the woman's brother. Manzanares objected, but lost his custody rights under the laws of that state, which many experts say typically favors birth mothers heavily in family law matters.
"The courts there should never have approved the custody change," he stated recently.
The Utah Supreme Court agreed with that view earlier this year, when it overturned the adoption. That put the custody case squarely back in a Colorado court, which ruled late last month that both birth parents will have visitation rights going forward, with the judge noting that he wants the child "to be given every opportunity to know her parents without putting any undue pressure on her."
A trial will be held on the matter in May.
"For all the dads fighting for custody," says Manzanares, "this ruling will go a long way in rewriting laws both in Utah and other states as it relates to what a dad's rights are, when a mother violates one state's laws to get a child adopted in [another.]"
Source: Fox News, "Unmarried father wins visitation rights in custody battle," Jon Bowman, April 27, 2012
]]>A QDRO is awarded by the court during the property settlement and equitable asset division phase of divorce proceedings. This decree approves property settlement agreements that include one or more retirement plans. This judgment permits an "alternate payee" to collect funds from another's retirement plan. Alternate payees usually include a spouse, ex-spouse, a child or children or another qualified dependent.
]]> At a minimum, a QDRO must contain certain specific information, including the following:Although divorce participants can complete QDRO forms by themselves, they are better served and protected by having a qualified attorney offer advice and help because of the legal necessities and wide-ranging ramification for each party.
Retirement plan administrators must approve components of a QDRO, providing for fund transfers to others from qualified retirement plans. Fortunately, fund transfers, per QDRO language, are not subject to IRS early-withdrawal penalties for either party.
Source: Reuters, "What is a QDRO? How divorce affects retirement," Andrew Chow, April 19, 2012
Specifically, what is being alluded to is the necessary recognition and acceptance by the courts of 21st century communication methods that are now commonplace and help allow for improved interaction between non-custodial parents and their children.
Those would be what most people already engage in routinely or are familiar with to some degree -- things like email, Facebook, Skype videoconferencing, texting and so forth.
Many family law practitioners and commentators note that technology is increasingly coming into play in child custody and visitation matters, especially in the communications between children and parents who are living hundreds -- if not thousands -- of miles away.
]]> Many courts already recognize this and are amenable to granting visitation rights under a parenting plan that allows for such distant contacts -- often called "virtual visitation" -- between a child and non-custodial parent.That courts are increasingly recognizing the utility of electronic visitation in keeping family members close and promoting best interests within a family is hardly surprising, given these numbers: A recent study indicates that about 25 percent of all children in separated or divorced families in the United States have one parent living in another city or state. That amounts to approximately 10 million children who would not have regular contact with a non-custodial parent except through virtual visitation.
Only six states thus far -- not including Georgia -- have enacted electronic visitation laws. Georgia judges, though, frequently make accommodations for virtual visitation, and the state, along with many others, is moving toward legislation on the matter.
Source: Washington Times, "Virtual visitation: a sensible child custody option," Myra Fleischer, April 15, 2012
]]>That group has also mentioned alternatives to jail, most prominently a court program that is gaining traction and increasing in popularity in many counties throughout Georgia.
The program is called Parental Accountability Court (PAC). Its main purpose is to provide support to indigent parents to identify the major hurdles that are preventing them from performing their duties and then assist those parents in overcoming those obstacles.
A major challenge for many indigent parents is, of course, finding a job, and PAC supports them in their efforts to find work.
"Too often the response to nonpayment is jail," says a representative for the Southern Center, who adds that, "Jail doesn't really solve the problem."
One mother who has been divorced for 10 years says that her former husband had little contact with the couple's children for most of that time. She states that things have changed greatly recently owing to his involvement with a PAC in Hall County,
"Not only is he making child support payments, he's seeing the children regularly," she says.
Source: ABA Journal, "New Parental Accountability Court helps increase child support payments while cutting jail costs," Martha Neil, April 13, 2012
]]>And although some laws and rules for divorcing couples can vary from one state to the next, residents in Georgia and others parts of the country should remember to address jointly held car insurance, because when you divorce, you're required to put the policy under only one of your names.
]]> Additionally, and within 30 days of finalizing your divorce, you should alert the company to any changes to your policy, including a new address. The location of your primary residence can have an effect on the cost of your policy, since different areas have different crime rates.Unfortunately, getting a divorce can make your policy rate increase. Most insurance companies offer discounts to married couples ranging from five to 15 percent, which you will lose after a divorce. And if you went from owning multiple cars to only having one, you will lose your multi-car discount and/or multi-policy discount, which can be worth up to 25 percent off the value of the policy.
You should also understand that insurance policies generally cover only one household, so the one policy that a couple formerly maintained for the multiple cars they drove will no longer be valid once they live in separate residences.
Failing to respect and honor these requirements could result in you losing your policy or having your insurance company fail to cover an accident should you file a claim without reporting the divorce.
Source: Fox, "Divorcing? Break the news to your car insurer, too," Penny Gusner, April 3, 2012
Not often, though, with divorce information in most instances being considered a matter of public record.
"It's really uncommon," says an attorney involved with one of the Richmond County cases. He states that the case is the first of approximately 2,500 divorces he has handled in which the judge has ordered certain information disclosed in the divorce proceeding to be sealed and withheld from the public.
]]> Such a determination often involves a judicial weighing process that pits the right of the general public to have open access to information that is deemed of legitimate benefit or public interest versus a person's privacy interests. Georgia case law accords judges "extremely broad discretion" in assessing those interests when they are in strong competition.Sometimes the court will find compelling reasons to seal a record. In one of the recently sealed cases, a divorcing couple was alleged to have provided alcohol to and subsequently sexually assaulted a minor. The judge in that case ordered that the complaint be closed to public scrutiny.
In the other case, the court ordered that financial information be kept under wraps until the divorce proceeding is finalized. In that matter, one of the parties -- a public servant -- argued that, notwithstanding his public status, certain private and embarrassing facts related to his dissolution have no legitimate public interest and that his authority could be "compromised by virtue of having a contested divorce played out in the public arena."
An experienced Fulton County family law firm can respond to questions and concerns relating to any divorce-related matter, including the disclosure of information regarding property division, child custody, child support or other issues.
Source: The Augusta Chronicle, "Richmond County has 2 recent high-profile sealed divorce cases," Kyle Martin, April 1, 2012
]]>One of the steps in the high-asset divorce case, which took place years before the investment failed, was the property division of a $5.4 million investment held by Madoff. Rather than pull the investment and dividing the funds, the man in the divorce decided to pay his wife her even share of the investment, allowing him to assume full possession of the fund.
]]> After the divorce, the fund was found to be part of widespread fraud committed by Madoff, and the funds were more or less nonexistent. The fraud affected investors across the United States, including in Georgia, and prompted the man to go to court to seek a revision to the property division settlement executed by the couple years earlier..In arguing for a revision, the man contended that he and his wife had made a mutual mistake with the investment and that it was basically worth nothing at the time of the divorce due to the committed fraud. He sought to recover the $2.7 million of the perceived value of the investment, cutting into his wife's total settlement of $6.25 million.
The court rejected his argument, however, contending that the fund's value was valid at the time because it could have been withdrawn as cash. Not until after the divorce was finalized did Madoff''s scheme start to fall apart as his pool of funds dissolved.
The judges contended that, had the investment grown considerably after the divorce was finalized, the woman would not be entitled to any of the dividends. Consequently, she was not liable for any losses, even if her ex-husband lost everything.
The case helps underscore how a divorce attorney with strong experience in property division and executing settlement agreements can make a material difference in how well a divorcing individual is financially positioned for his or her post-divorce life.
Source: Wall Street Journal, "NY's top court refuses to undo divorce settlement," April 3, 2012
]]>The reason: All property-related matters in the couple's high-asset divorce were settled last October, pursuant to which Jamie received $131 million for her share of the team.
]]> In hindsight, that property division outcome seems more than a bit one-sided and reflective of questionable negotiating skills on behalf of those representing Jamie McCourt. One Wall Street Journal columnist questioned whether it was "the baseball world's worst trade."And to make the outcome even a bit harder to understand for some people who are really crunching the numbers, the $131 million was seemingly arrived at after considerable thought and investigation. Both sides in the divorce hired experts to appraise the team's value. Their evaluations came in at numbers ranging from $900 million to $1.3 billion.
Says one party closely interested in the matter; "It likely wasn't bad lawyering, but bad appraisal advice."
Others aren't so sure, noting that Jamie McCourt might have had strong and well-considered reasons for the settlement she executed. One commentator says she may have been motivated to settle to avoid protracted and expensive litigation.
Another notes the sporadic and uncertain stock market and global economic mood that prevailed throughout much of last year, which could just as conceivably have resulted in the team ultimately selling for even less than what appraisers initially thought.
"And the truth is," says a representative for Frank McCourt, "nobody in their wildest dreams thought that the team would bring in a $2 billion bid."
In fact, the price for the Dodgers was the most ever paid -- by a substantial sum -- for any professional sports team.
Source: Wall Street Journal, "Jamie McCourt's share: Baseball's worst deal?" Ashby Jones, March 28, 2012
]]>The issue is far from academic and is invoking intense interest in Congress. In Georgia for instance, there are more than 60,000 active-duty service members, coupled with over 40,000 reservists, with installations housing every branch of the military. Divorce is not uncommon in the military, and many families have custody issues
]]> The outcome of custody disputes has often gone against service members solely because of their deployment status, with some courts deeming deployment as a factor in their custody determinations.Turner and many others in Congress want that changed, with a parent's deployment status being deemed irrelevant in a custody matter. They say that a child's best interests -- not a parent's work location -- should always be the sole determinant in that outcome.
Turner is co-sponsor -- along with Rob Andrews, D-N.J. -- of a new House bill that has unanimous endorsement in that body's Armed Services Committee. Similar bills have been passed that suffered defeat in the Senate, but supporters are hopeful of a different result this time, given that all 63 members of the committee have signed off, evidencing the legislation's strong bipartisan support.
The committee expects the bill to pass in May and go to the Senate for consideration.
Source: Washington Post, "Proposal would protect custody rights during deployments," Timothy R. Smith, March 19, 2012
Air Force Times, "Bill would strengthen child custody protections," Rick Maze, April 2, 2012
]]>An experienced family law attorney, especially one who has handled your divorce and is intimately familiar with the always unique factors involved in every divorce (such as child custody, child support, alimony, property division and other possibilities) is a good contact point for analysis and discussion of how tax-related issues might play out following a divorce proceeding.
]]> One such focus following many divorces logically centers on tax breaks relating to children that are available under the Code.There are many such breaks, and paying attention to them can result in considerable savings. Intuitively, it might seem most logical that the custodial parent -- the parent who has primary custody of a child -- will receive most, if not all, of the child-related tax breaks, but that is far from true in many cases.
For example, and provided certain requirements are met, a custodial parent can give the noncustodial parent the legal right to claim a child as a dependent for tax purposes. This allows the latter to claim a dependency exemption deduction for the child, as well as several other credits and deductions that might be available.
Those often valuable offsets can include a child tax credit, a deduction for payment on student loan interest and various other education-related credits and deductions.
Those breaks can be claimed by only one -- not both -- of the parents, but there are others that are available to both. Those include, for instance, itemized deductions that each parent can claim for medical expenses paid for a child
And, understandably, certain breaks are available only to the custodial parent.
The point: Close scrutiny of a couple's personal situation with a close eye on the Tax Code can often yield significant breaks and savings for one or both parents of a child.
Contact an experienced family law attorney for advice on a divorce and related tax implications.
Source: Smart Money, "Child-related tax breaks after divorce," Bill Bischoff, March 28, 2012
]]>The matter is, however, a bona-fide and growing news story and has become replete with sufficiently varied aspects of a complex dissolution as to make it potentially instructive and certainly educational for some people.
]]> The Iversons -- high-school sweethearts -- were married in 2001. Tawanna filed divorce paperwork in Fulton County Superior Court in June last year, saying the marriage was irretrievably broken and asking for child support and alimony.Recent tabloid accounts have centered on a request she made in legal discovery last year asking that Iverson submit information on every sexual partner he had from the couple's marriage inception. She recently denied she had made such a request, but that is belied by a "motion to compel" order she filed with the court earlier this month seeking compliance with her earlier request.
Much about the case centers on Iverson's money, with various media reports stating that the athlete may have squandered as much as $200 million over his earning career, with bankruptcy now looming.
Several reports, though, rebut that notion. Peter Vecsey, a respected sports writer, offers a contrary view and points to sources stating that Iverson, while certainly profligate, is far from broke. Reportedly, Iverson has an account in excess of $30 million that he draws $1 million from annually and is otherwise barred from touching until he turns 55.
Additionally, and as a tenured NBA veteran, Iverson will begin receiving about $8,000 monthly from his league pension when he turns 45.
"He seems to have planned his future with some perspective," says Vecsey.
In the meantime, the couple's sensationalized divorce matter plays out in Georgia, with media outlets across the country adding updates on a regular basis.
Source: Yahoo! Sports, "Allen Iverson isn't broke by any definition," Eric Freeman, March 2, 2012
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