Morristown Family Lawyer Blog

21

Jun 2018

Breastfeeding and Custody

When a new baby is born, the parents will face an overwhelming number of decisions about the child’s upbringing and welfare. Where will the child primarily reside? Cloth diapers or disposable diapers? Which pediatrician should they use? One of the important decisions is whether the child will be breastfed. Science supports the oft-repeated mantra of “breast is best,” but when the parents no longer ...

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14

Jun 2018

Step-Parent Rights

As the landscape of the American family changes, it should come as no surprise that remarriage following a divorce is more common than ever. With the social taboos against divorce disappearing, divorced spouses will naturally move on after a divorce and sometimes remarry. When children are involved, a new step-parent will need to work hard to develop a new and meaningful relationship with the ...

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07

Jun 2018

Important Pre-Nuptial Considerations

Starting a new family by getting married is an exciting time. Growing your family and starting your future together with the person you love is something that everyone looks forward to. While there are many fun and thrilling things to plan and do when you are getting ready to get married, executing a pre-nuptial agreement is not typically counted among those fun tasks. In some cases, however, a ...

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05

Jun 2018

Common Custody Mistakes in Your Settlement Agreement

Most cases settle out of court. Creating a settlement agreement can be of great benefit to parents, as it allows them to tailor-make a custody and visitation arrangement that is custom built to meet the needs of their family and their children. As every family is different, the benefits are clear to see, as going into court rarely results in an order that has as many individualized provisions as ...

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31

May 2018

Making Sure Your Approach to Divorce Doesn't Hurt Your Children

Every parent simply wants what is best for his or her children. Co-parenting during a healthy and successful relationship is difficult and often even the happiest couples will have disagreements on how to handle parenting issues. When a couple is divorcing, those parenting issues can become infinitely more complicated, as now you are trying to navigate a complicated legal proceeding as well as ...

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15

May 2018

Top Business Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

The American dream includes working hard and achieving your goals for yourself and your family. There are twenty eight million small businesses in the United States, and behind each and every one are hard-working individuals striving to make the business a success. Husband and wife teams are frequently behind these businesses and may have spent decades working on the business and helping it to ...

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10

May 2018

Divorce Rates Spike After Holidays

People with successful marriages know that it is important to work on your marriage no matter what time of year it is. A successful marriage requires effort from both spouses every day, year round. Summer and winter holidays can often be some of the most fun times for these strong marriages, as they provide an opportunity to spend time with each other, immediate family, and extended family. For a ...

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08

May 2018

How Rights Change with Cohabitation Versus Marriage

The structure and landscape of the American family is changing. Not that long ago it was culturally taboo for a couple to live together without the benefit of marriage. This is no longer the case, and it is now very common for people to reside together, plan for the future together, and even have children together without even ever considering the possibility of formalizing their relationship. ...

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26

Apr 2018

Civil Restraining Orders

Domestic violence remains a widespread problem in the United States, and New Jersey, unfortunately, is no exception. The New Jersey Prevention of Domestic Violence Act provides options for victims of domestic violence to obtain protection from their abusers. One method is to request a restraining order from the court to prevent the abuser from coming around or contacting the victim. This is ...

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24

Apr 2018

How Can a Cell Phone Be Used in My Divorce?

Almost everyone today has a cell phone, and most of those are smart phones. We use our phones many times a day for sending email, taking pictures, making phone calls, checking social media, playing games, using GPS services, and a large variety of other reasons. To varying degrees, our phones can provide a startlingly accurate picture of how a person has spent his or her day. During family law ...

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19

Apr 2018

When to Request Sole Custody

Custody issues are often the most sensitive and central of any family law case. The safety and well-being of the children is of upmost importance to the parents involved, and they are often willing to fight for a long time in court to make sure that the ultimate court order reflects what they believe is in the child’s best interest. The vast majority of cases end with parents sharing joint legal ...

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17

Apr 2018

Abandonment and Moving Out - Does Timing of Separation Matter?

The end of a marriage can sometimes be an amicable split that gives the parties plenty of time to think over their new housing arrangements and contemplate how to handle their next steps. Unfortunately, this is not always the case, and one spouse may feel the need to move out as soon as possible in order to avoid an acrimonious home environment. In such a case, the person leaving the home needs to ...

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12

Apr 2018

Continued Cohabitation During Divorce

Going through a divorce means drastic changes for everyone involved. Whereas you have previously spent your days planning for an emotional and financial future attached to your spouse, divorce means having to shift your point of view and plans. Although divorce will ultimately mean that you and your spouse will no longer be living together, not all divorce parties choose to immediately separate ...

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10

Apr 2018

Divorce and Private School

Education is of central importance to any child’s future. Parents work long and hard to help save for a child’s education and make sure that they obtain the best opportunities possible. In recognition of the essential nature of a solid education for a child’s future, the New Jersey legislature has provided specific provisions to order both parents to contribute to college expenses, even after a ...

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05

Apr 2018

Traveling After Divorce - Interstate and International Considerations

Taking children on vacation can be a wonderful experience and can build memories that last a lifetime for both the parents and the children. After a divorce or separation, vacations are even more important, as they provide an essential opportunity for the parents to have quality bonding time with their children. However, when there has been a divorce or custody order entered, parents should be ...

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03

Apr 2018

Proper Use of Marital Funds During Divorce

Going through a divorce is a time of uncertainty and instability. A big part of this is that divorce is one of the most financially unstable times for almost every couple. Dividing finances and making sure there are enough resources to cover to households can stretch many budgets to the limit. Although many people have some money put away in savings or investments, all money that was acquired ...

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29

Mar 2018

I Just Filed For Divorce - Now What Happens?

The legal process is full of many crucial and detailed steps. Family law cases are no exception to this. After deciding to divorce, many divorce parties feel a strong sense of anxiety or chaos. Understanding the basic steps in the divorce process may help you to feel like you have taken back a measure of control and reduce your feelings of uncertainty. After you have filed the initial Complaint ...

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27

Mar 2018

What to Do With Your Marital Debt

The end of a marriage is an emotionally overwhelming time. To make things more difficult, divorce is also usually one of the most financially difficult times for any person going through a divorce. Although in the past you and your spouse have been able to rely on each other for financial support and dividing all debt responsibility, after the divorce, you will both have to figure out how to ...

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22

Mar 2018

Motions in Limine and Domestic Violence – L.C. v. M.A.J.

During any type of family law case, as with any other case, there are a large variety of procedural issues that must be skillfully handled to ensure that the party’s case is properly and completely presented to the court. One tool available to attorneys to accomplish this goal is called a “motion in limine. ” This type of motion is one that asks that the court prevent particular pieces of evidence ...

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15

Mar 2018

Domestic Violence Accusations in Child Custody Cases

It is an unfortunate reality that both custody and domestic violence are frequently litigated issues. Parents will go to extreme lengths to make sure that their children are safe and that a final custody order provides for what is in the child’s best interests. When domestic violence is also involved in a relationship, the inquiry regarding visitation or custody can become more complicated. A ...

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08

Mar 2018

Protecting Yourself and Your Children When Divorcing an Abusive Spouse

Domestic violence takes many forms, including physical, emotional, and financial. Abusers often aim to exercise total control over their victims by instilling fear, hopelessness, and poor self-esteem in their victims. Victims of domestic violence may often find it difficult to get out of an abusive home and may fear filing for divorce. If you are a victim of domestic violence, there are ways to ...

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01

Mar 2018

Tips to Making a Realistic Child Custody Plan

When parents decide to separate or divorce, there will need to be special provisions made for visitation and custody of the parties’ children. In some cases, the parties will be unable to come to an agreement and they will have to go to court to have a judge make a determination on what is best for the child or children. In the majority of cases, however, parents are able to come to an agreement ...

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22

Feb 2018

How Much Do I Have to Share? - Dealing with a Nosy Former Spouse

During a marriage or relationship, spouses tend to share most of the details of their respective days. A marriage requires sharing thoughts and experiences, but that flow of information clearly ends when the relationship ends in divorce. Especially where people share children, there needs to be continued exchange of information following a divorce. There are some situations, though, where your ...

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20

Feb 2018

Who Should I Call to Testify? - Teachers, Babysitters, Doctors

The vast majority of divorce and custody cases end in settlements. Mediation and arbitration allow divorce and custody parties to craft their own custody orders by working together. Unfortunately, this does not always work. Parties are not always able to come to an agreement about what is best for their children. In this situation, the parties will need to have a trial and present evidence to a ...

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15

Feb 2018

Fighting Parental Alienation

In a perfect world, parents would always work together for the best interest of their children, and custody issues could be civilly resolved in a calm manner. Custody battles can unfortunately sometimes deteriorate when the parents use the children as a way to get back at each other. Parental alienation is one way that parental anger and resentment may manifest itself during or after a custody ...

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