Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Solving family law issues

The first family law issue to confront when divorcing is to know the rules of the Family Court and the power of the judge. The family court judge has the power over decisions for divorcing couples. Family laws are designed to resolve issues that could not be handled curing mediation or negotiations.

These include marital property, visitation and child custody and spousal support. When working before a judge whether by yourself or with a California divorce attorney, make sure you have the facts and proof of what you want. A judge can make an informed decisions on family law concerns only if the entire story is told. All negotiations should be written down and presented to the judge. He will mediate, but his basic duty is to preside and make the final decisions.

Most family law judges are fair and competent when presented with all the facts.

DISCLAIMER: This is not legal advice, and should not be construed as legal advice or relied upon as legal advice. nmarangi@pacbell.net

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Rules of Family Law II

The first rule of family law and divorce is mandatory disclosure. These disclosures are filed shortly after the respondent answers and counters or are in agreement to the divorce terms. Disclosures must include all financial papers including bank account statements, retirement accounts, credit card statements as well as titles to homes and vehicles. It is against the law to hide assets in a divorce case.

The second rule involves interrogatories that need to be filled out. Interrogatories are questions that both parties must answer and you need to respond to each question fully. Third is the request for admissions which include information about custody issues, questionable documents and financial support. Fourth is the deposition phase which includes discussions about topics of contention form custody to financial issues.

Depositions are taken under oath in front of a judge, recorded by court reporters and filed with the court.

DISCLAIMER: This is not legal advice, and should not be construed as legal advice or relied upon as legal advice. nmarangi@pacbell.net

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Divorce and Family Law

What is Family Law?
Family law is basically the laws that are related to and regarding families. This includes the establishment of domestic relationship and the rules for creating a family. Domestic family matters, partnership, marriages as well as civil unions fall under the jurisdiction of family law.  Family law also includes termination of the partnership or marriage and the issues of alimony, child support, custody, and property and asset division.

Family law addresses adoptions, domestic abuse, and child abuse.  Most family laws are ruled by statute, but there are common precedents that play important roles. These laws vary from state to state and community to community. Self-help services and legal forms for individuals are available through family law sites, but complications are generally the norm for family law and retaining an attorney is the best advice.
Divorce is the legal conclusion of a marriage and statutes and requirements are different from state to state.

Even when doing a divorce without legal representation you will need a magistrate to approve and review the settlement. If divorcing couples cannot agree on a settlement, the judge will use precedents and statutes to decide in what way property will be distributed. Parenting and custody issues are handled through specific laws and rules. Couples are not legally divorced until the divorce papers are signed by both parties, a judge and filed with the court. Each state and district has the authority to decide on child support and alimony, how long you need to live in a state before divorcing, and the waiting time before the divorce can be filed. Family laws take into consideration community property and the equitable distribution of that property. This is often at the request of the divorcing parties.

Community property family laws can be confusing and complicated. Community property is defined as properties that are physical or monetary and owned equally by both spouses. Community property is often divided equally between the parties, and property held in only one name is the responsibility of that spouse.  Although equitable distribution claims indicate that assets accumulated during marriage are divided fairly, this division may not be monetary equal. The family court may award assets in terms of percentages.

DISCLAIMER: This is not legal advice, and should not be construed as legal advice or relied upon as legal advice. nmarangi@pacbell.net

Friday, September 7, 2012

Rules of Family Law

The first rule of family law and divorce is mandatory disclosure. These disclosures are filed shortly after the respondent answers and counters petitions to the divorce. Disclosure comprises all financial papers including bank account statements, retirement accounts, credit card statements as well as titles to homes and vehicles.

Student loan statements also need to be included. Both parties need copies of financial documents and a family law financial affidavit must be filed with the court. The second rule involves interrogatories that are used in contested cases. This is a procedure when assets and liabilities are involved. Interrogatories are questions that both parties need to answer and most states limit the number of question that can be asked. You need to respond to each question fully; nothing can be left blank, and if you do not have the property questioned in your possession, you need to indicate where the property is located. Thirdly is the request for admissions.

This is a form of discovery governed by family law rules. This request for admissions is required from the served party. The request for admission requires specific information about certain activities. Custody cases can be held to find information about children who have been injured or taken to a doctors for an emergency. Doctors, frequency of visits and reasons for visits need to be documented. Additional requests of admissions can involve documents hidden or forged by one party, lack of forthcoming information, or ignoring a request. Fourth is the deposition phase.

These are very common in family law and divorce and cover topics from contention to custody to financial issues. Depositions are always taken under oath and in front of a judge. If divorce attorneys are involved the attorney may attend the deposition with the client, but this is not mandatory. Depositions are recorded by court reporters, either through video or tape recorder and given to opposing attorneys. These depositions are filed with the court and become part of the family law documents.
DISCLAIMER: This is not legal advice, and should not be construed as legal advice or relied upon as legal advice. nmarangi@pacbell.net

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

What is Family Law

Divorce is the legal ending of a marriage and each state has different terms and requirements of how to complete a divorce. All divorce degrees require a judge to approve and review the settlement. If the parties cannot agree to a settlement, the judge will decide how property will be divided and parenting time shared. You are not legally divorced until the degree is signed by a judge and filed with the court.

Each state will decide how child support and alimony are allotted, how long you need to live in a state before divorcing, and the waiting period before the divorce can be filed. Family law works with community property and equitable distribution of that property. Community property in most states is defined as properties either physical or monetary owned equally by couples. Community property is often divided equally between the parties, but if there is property held in only one name, that property is kept by the designated spouse.

Equitable distribution claims that the assets accumulated during marriage are divided fairly, but may not be equal. The court may award each spouse only a fraction of the value of property and debts.
DISCLAIMER: This is not legal advice, and should not be construed as legal advice or relied upon as legal advice. nmarangi@pacbell.net

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Finding a Divorce Attorney

You may spend an abundant amount of time with your attorney and he/she will have accesses to all your financial, marital and possibly private affairs. A divorce attorney generally meets with a potential client to discuss the facts of the divorce and information and details will be collected by the attorney to determine if there are grounds for divorce.

The divorce attorney should provide a summary of the procedures and give written responsibilities at the initial hiring meeting. Hiring a capable divorce attorney may involve a potential client finding out what former clients feel about a particular attorney. Can you communicate with the attorney? If you cannot relate to the attorney nor do not get timely responses to your calls and emails, this may not be the attorney that you want to hire. Be open about fees. Some divorce attorneys will do a first consultation for no charge and subsequent visits will be charged an hourly rate or at a retainer rate.

Make sure you are comfortable with your chosen attorney and believe that the divorce attorney is competent and trustworthy. If you cannot definitely answer, yes to these questions, keep searching.

DISCLAIMER: This is not legal advice, and should not be construed as legal advice or relied upon as legal advice. nmarangi@pacbell.net