Speak With a Child Custody Attorney if Your Job Situation Has Changed

You should call a child custody attorney if you have experienced a change in your employment.  When you get a divorce, the judge will make a determination over who gets custody, visitation and child support.  The problem is that if your kids are young when you get divorced life is bound to change.  Whether it is a change in your employment, your kids' school, getting remarried, etc. – life changes and as it does you have to be able to change with it.

This is easier said than done when the court system is involved.  It’s not as simple as saying “I need to move”.  You have to get your ex to agree to any changes you propose or go to court and fight for them.  We can help you to build your case and make sure that you have the opportunity to adjust to any changes that life throws your way. 

As a child custody attorney there are many times where our clients' employment dictates the need for a change.  This may include:

• Getting laid off.  When you lose your job, your income will change.  If you are in a situation where you are paying child support, we can help to get the amount you have to pay adjusted.  Financially it is not feasible for you to continue to pay as much as you did when you were making more money.  Call us right away so that we can get you into court quickly before your financial situation becomes dire. If you fall behind in child support, your situation could become worse as there are additional legal consequences associated with failing to pay. 
• Relocation.  If your employer relocated you, this can create a problem with your custody arrangement.  You are not legally allowed to move out of the school district without the permission of your ex or the approval of a judge. We can help by submitting a request for relocation and proving to the court why this is necessary for you and in the best interest of your children.  The judge and your ex cannot prevent you from relocating, but the judge can prevent your kids from relocating with you if they think the move is not in their best interest. 
• Going back to school.  If you are adjusting your work hours in order to go back to school, this can also impact how much money you make and prompt a change in how much child support you are paying or receiving.  In order to get it adjusted, we need to make an official request to do so.

Regardless of what changes are happening in your life, we can make sure that your rights are protected and that custody or child support are adjusted accordingly.  These cases can be complicated so working with a lawyer is advisable.  As a child custody attorney, these are the type of cases we handle on a regular basis so give us a call today. 

A Divorce Attorney Can Help You to Determine Who Gets Your Pets

As a local divorce attorney, we work with a lot of couples that have complicated divorces.  If you and your soon to be ex don’t get along, it can be difficult to determine who will get what when dividing assets.  This can range from fights over the home to who gets the couch and what to do with the pets.  If you are in this situation, hire a lawyer as soon as possible in order to sort it out quickly.

Determining what happens to the pets can be the most difficult of all.  Pets are not treated like children by the court, even if you treat them that way. That means that the judge is under no obligation to split custody between you and your ex.  Instead, they are treated like property so as the couch is given to one of you, your pets may be given to one of you as well.

As a divorce attorney, we can help to build a case for why you should retain possession or custody of your pets.  In order to do so, we need as much information as possible.  This way we can demonstrate who cares for the pets, takes them to the vet, spends the most time with them, etc.  Just like we would prove a strong bond with children we must also prove a strong bond with your pet.  If you are trying to keep a pet that was bought by your ex prior to the marriage this becomes more difficult to do.

We often recommend that you try mediation so that we can negotiate with your ex and their attorney over who should keep your family pet.  We understand that this is a very sensitive matter because pets are a member of the family.  The challenge is that if it cannot be resolved through negotiations the judge will make a decision.  They will decide at the same time they are deciding what happens to all of your other assets and the custody of your children, which means they will be very busy.  There is always a risk in letting the judge decide because you never know what they will do. In negotiations, you have more of an opportunity to have things go your way or at least reach a compromise.

Before starting mediation, you should consider what you would be willing to give up in exchange.  Think about something that your ex really wants and whether or not you would be willing to part with it.  For example, if you purchased a boat last summer and they want to keep it, would you rather have your pet or your boat?  They may be willing to sacrifice keeping the family dog if they can keep the family home or something else that is of sentimental value.  Consider your options and what you are willing to do then as your divorce attorney, we can negotiate on your behalf and help you to keep custody of Sparky.