What happens to the alienated parent? There is a lot of advice about how to help a polarized child reduce or bridge the anger and antagonism toward the alienated parent. What happens to the alienated parent if there is no reconciliation while the child is Read more
Will a Prenup Doom Your Marriage?
Not everyone getting married enters into a prenuptial agreement, or prenup, but many do. The reasons vary, but most often it comes down to this: one spouse (or his or her parents) has significant assets entering the marriage and wants to preserve it as separate Read more
When It Matters Whose Fault the Divorce Is
Clients often ask me if they can be awarded more money when the divorce is their spouse’s fault. When one spouse has been betrayed, lied to, or does not want the marriage to end, he or she may feel entitled to more support (a.k.a maintenance Read more
Is Mental Illness Affecting Your Divorce?
Millions of Americans suffer from some kind of mental illness. And a significant number of them are involved in troubled marriages that result in divorce. We have represented many clients who either had mental illness or had spouses with mental illness, and it can make Read more
Social Media and Divorce: If Your Marriage is Ending, Stay Off Facebook
Social media and the Internet have expanded social horizons in people’s lives. But in some circumstances, these forces can be troublemakers. In particular, social media and divorce don’t mix. People use social media to connect with everyone they know: family, close friends, classmates, colleagues, support Read more
The Power of a Post Nuptial Agreement
Who needs a post nuptial agreement? What happens when a couple starts negotiating a prenuptial agreement too close to the wedding date and cannot agree on all the terms? Or they have been married for a long time, but disagree on how to manage their Read more
How Substance Abuse Will Affect Visitation with Your Children
When substance abuse leads to divorce Seeing a family torn apart by a parent’s substance abuse is a difficult part of my family law practice. Substance abuse causes many marriages or relationships to end, and the circumstances can be bitter: an arrest or order of Read more
Is Open Access After Divorce Always Best for Children?
Recent studies show that after a divorce, children prefer—and fare better—having open access to both parents. “Open access” means frequent, unrestricted access to the noncustodial parent, if one parent has primary physical custody. This sounds ideal. But is open access realistic for most people? Access Read more
Consequences and Compassion in Divorce
Is compassion for someone struggling with alcohol or drug abuse the most important step in helping them to recovery? Or must consequences be imposed in order to get a substance abuser to change his or her life? Recently, I read an article about consequences and Read more
