Uncategorized Blog

12

Jun 2018

Surrogacy Agreements

Growing your family is an exciting time. However, not all couples will go through the traditional pregnancy and birth process in order to bring a new baby home. There are many options for couples looking to add new family members, including adoption, in vitro fertilization, and surrogacy agreements. Gestational surrogacy is a process by which an embryo is created through in vitro fertilization and ...

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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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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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01

May 2018

Property Division Without Divorce

In today’s society, the form of relationships is changing quickly. While it used to be against societal taboos for people to live together out of wedlock, it is no longer frowned upon or even unusual. People may live together for a lifetime, combine finances, have children together, and plan for the future all without ever formalizing their relationship. New Jersey does not recognize “common law” ...

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27

Feb 2018

Changes to Records Available to Adopted Children

Adoption is a wonderful way for families to expand and provide love and support to a child or children in need of a home. In the vast majority of states, adoption records are sealed. This means that adopted children are not able to obtain copies of their original birth certificates and discover the identity of their birth parents. In 2014, the governor signed a new bill changing New Jersey from a ...

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11

Jan 2018

Divorce Therapy, Parenting Classes, Family Counseling and Divorce Coaching – What are They and Why Are They Helpful

Few things are as emotionally difficult in someone’s life as a divorce. Building your life with someone for years only to realize that the relationship is disintegrating can be truly earth shattering, even when you know that separating is the right decision for you. Fortunately, as the years have progressed, there have been more and more tools available to help those going through a divorce or ...

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02

Jan 2018

Why You Need an Attorney Even in an Uncontested Divorce

More and more custody and divorce cases are ending in settlement. This is a trend that is common across all types of litigation. This should come as no surprise, as coming to a settlement allows parties to save time and money, as well as have some control over the end result of their case. Nowhere is this control more important than when in family law, as the ultimate decision will have an ...

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27

Dec 2017

Adult Adoption

Expanding a family through an adoption is always a joyous occasion. Most people think of adoption as relating only to children, especially very young infants. However, adoption possibilities do not stop when the person to be adopted reaches the age of eighteen. Adult adoption is a possibility in New Jersey. New Jersey 2A:22-1 provides that any unmarried person over the age of eighteen may be ...

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12

Dec 2017

Sacklow v. Betts - Name Change for a Transgender Minor

Parents make decisions every day on behalf of their children. What they will eat, what they will wear, where they will play, or where they will go to school. Few decisions have such a long-lasting impact as a child’s name. Children will carry their name with them throughout their life and in some ways, a name will define us. In some cases, that definition no longer fits. In a recent case, a New ...

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05

Dec 2017

Heart-Balm Acts and Digna v. Fernandez

The end of a marriage or separation is a very emotional time. This can be especially true where one person has been unfaithful. It is quite common in these circumstances for the wronged spouse to feel like the new boyfriend or girlfriend should somehow be held accountable for breaking up the marriage. However, New Jersey has passed what is called a “Heart Balm Act” to prevent exactly this type of ...

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23

Nov 2017

Death of a Custodial Parent

Every parent wants nothing more than to be there for his or her children as long as possible. For most of us, that means being there well after the child is over the age of eighteen and legally able to care for him or herself. Unfortunately, there are cases when parents pass away while the children are still minors. When parents are still married or living together, while it is clearly a tragic ...

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30

Oct 2017

Timing - When is the Right Time to Divorce?

No one wants to contemplate that their marriage may at some point end in divorce. Most parties fight hard to keep their marriage together, taking important measures such as counseling, or even trial separations. In some cases, these measures will not be enough, and the parties will decide to end their marriage. A common question is when is the best time to actually file for divorce? One way to ...

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09

Oct 2017

Divorce and Workplace Discrimination – Smith v. Millville

Although divorce can bring big changes to most aspects of life, one area that often remains the same throughout the proceedings is employment. Usually parties are advised to do their best to maintain steady and stable employment during a divorce or child custody case and do their best to not alter their hours or income while a case is pending. In some unfortunate cases, a party may be laid off or ...

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14

Jul 2017

Am I Liable for My Spouse's Unpaid Taxes?

April means tax time in the United States. Many people will be scrambling to get their taxes finished up by the deadline or filing extensions to give them a little extra time to get their taxes filed. Many married couples choose to file their taxes jointly, as it confers extra tax benefits. Taxes are complicated, though, and mistakes can be made, leading to back taxes and penalties owed to the ...

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18

May 2017

Domestic Partnership Basics

In 2004, New Jersey passed a law called the Domestic Partnership Act. This law held that same-sex couples who were over the age of eighteen could enter into a domestic partnership. The law also allowed for opposite-sex couples who were over the age of sixty-two to enter into a domestic partnership. However, in 2007, New Jersey passed another law called the Civil Union Act, which changed the ...

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17

Feb 2016

NJ FAMILY LAW AND THE FUTURE OF THE U.S. SUPREME COURT

We do not usually talk about the U.S. Supreme Court on this blog, which is devoted to NJ Family Law. The reason is simple, in that NJ Family Law is not typically effected by opinions of our country’s highest court. Family law is one area that is almost exclusively governed by state law. With the few exceptions revolving around the constitutional right of parents with regard to their children or ...

Posted By Previte Nachlinger

27

Jun 2015

Instant Analysis: U.S. Supreme Court Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage

On June 26, 2015, the United State Supreme Court, in the case of Obergefell v. Hodges, ruled that it is a violation of the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution to deny same-sex couples the right to enter into a civil marriage. In plain English, same-sex couples anywhere in the jurisdiction of the United States can now enter into a civil marriage. In addition, if you are married in New ...

Posted By Previte Nachlinger

21

Mar 2015

To Mediate Or Not To Mediate...That Is The Question

When a marriage or civil union has reached the end of the road , a common question we are asked is whether the parties should go through mediation to reach a resolution prior to filing a complaint. Mediation is a process where the parties agree to submit their dispute to a neutral third party who tries to help the parties bridge their positions and reach an amicable resolution. Mediators, in the ...

Posted By Previte Nachlinger

17

Feb 2015

Winter Weather Delays

Due to the winter weather, our office will not open until 10:00 a.m. today, February 17, 2015. Also, note that many of the courthouses around New Jersey have a 11:00 a.m. delayed opening, including many counties we frequent such as Burlington, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Monmouth, Somerset, and Ocean. Hudson County will open at 10:30 a.m., Mercer County is completely closed today for non-weather related ...

Posted By Previte Nachlinger