Divorce Legal Questions

Unless and until the deed is signed over, your wife is still a co-owner (tenant in common) with respect to the house and will still have certain rights, irrespective of what the divorce papers may say.  Any borrower or prospective seller will not know what happened in the divorce action.  They will only know what is recorded on the property records.  You must have her sign a deed.... Read More

You are entitled to spousal support/maintenance.  However, you must file for divorce in order to have a court order that would require him to pay you.  You are also entitled to a marital portion of his retirement/pension.  You would have to have a court order in order for you to receive your share. You may be entitled to other equitable distribution as well. You should contact myself or another experienced divorce attorney to have a full consultation.... Read More

The answer is yes, you can divorce someone with dementia.  The way we do this is to have a Guardian ad Litem appointed to protect your husband's interests.  It's the same process we use all the time with spouses who are incarcerated and therefore also legally incapacitated.  The GAL is another lawyer who is appointed by the court and will do what they believe is in your husband's best interest (not necessarily what he says he wants - like lawyers representing clients are required to do).  This does not mean they can stop the divorce; you will still be able to divorce him.  It might just take a little longer than usual, since the GAL needs an opportunity to look into the situation.  You woudl be responsible for paying for the GAL as well as your own lawyer.  One complication may be who is going to manage your husband's share of any marital funds or assets and these would probably need to be set up in trust for him.  You may need to seek guardianship and conservatorship, if you have not already, which you may have been able to get away without, being his spouse, but probably not as an ex-spouse.  As you can see there are going to be many layers complicating this.  Many people simply date before they are officially divorced and while adultery is technically still a crime in Virginia it is almost never prosecuted.  So while I would not be able to advise you to break the law I can tell you that in this instance it would definitley be the easier path.  I'm pretty sure God and any other judges would understand. ... Read More

There is no duty of good faith or "bad faith" with an opposing party if their lawyer, avoiding a default judgement is possible but you're going to need to file quickly and it may be possible to agree on a decree that provides the terms you are wanting.    It is very common to ask for sole custody but to submit a decree with Joint custody.  I'd recommend you meet with a lawyer in your area to protect your rights.... Read More

In most cases, yes — if you haven’t signed an agreement or the attorney hasn’t performed any work on your case, you can usually request a full refund of the retainer. A retainer is meant to cover future legal services, so if the lawyer hasn’t started billing time or expenses, they generally must return any unearned portion. Even without a signed contract, it’s best to put your cancellation in writing (email is fine) and politely ask for confirmation that the retainer will be refunded. If the lawyer already opened a file or did preliminary work, they may deduct a small administrative fee, but they should provide an itemized explanation if any money is withheld. If you have trouble getting your refund, you can contact the South Carolina Bar’s Fee Dispute Program, which helps clients resolve issues like this at no cost. It’s understandable to want an attorney closer to you—just make sure you get everything in writing with the next lawyer so expectations about retainers, billing, and refunds are clear from the start.... Read More

This is a common but difficult situation. The divorce agreement may have assigned the home to your ex-husband, but that does not remove your name from the mortgage. The only way to be released from liability is through a refinance or payoff—which unfortunately didn’t happen. The lender’s contract remains binding until that loan is satisfied or refinanced in someone else’s name. Because your ex-husband has passed away, his estate (and possibly his heirs) is now responsible for the property. However, since your name is still on the loan, the bank can still report or pursue you if payments lapse. You may have a claim against his estate for failing to refinance as required by the divorce decree, but that’s something you’d need to address through probate or civil court. You should gather the divorce judgment, the deed, and mortgage statements, then speak with a North Carolina family law or real estate attorney. They can review whether the property legally transferred to his sister and what options exist to have you removed from the mortgage or to protect your credit and financial interests going forward.... Read More

The answer to this may be in the wording of your divorce agreement. If the wording is silent about how to address this issue, and both of you are not able to come to an agreement as to the amount he would receive, it would have to be left up to the court to decide after making an application to the court on this issue. As a first step, I would suggest having your agreement reviewed by an experienced family law attorney to discuss the language, and what your options are.... Read More

If you are not able to find an attorney who is local and can't afford an out of town attorney, the only other options that I can think of is to represent yourself or see if you are able to find an attorney who is willing to represent you for free.  We do offer advice and assistance at our regular hourly rate without making a general appearance in your case.   You may even hire us to draft documents for you to file in court.  That should be much less expensive than hiring an attorney to handle the case for you.  If you are interested in an initial consultation to discuss this matter, please call us at 919-680-2300.  ... Read More

That is a big no-no on the part of the attorney.  Attorneys are supposed to perform conflict checks before consulting with potential clients, and if they had, it would have shown that he talked with you about it already.  Representing her on the same or similar matter that you consulted him about is a violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct.  You should talk with your attorney about advising the other attorney that he needs to withdraw from representing your spouse, and if not, them you may want report him to your state bar.   In fact, you may want to report him whether he withdraws or not.  If he is not performing conflict checks before taking on new clients, you might be doing future potential clients a favor by making sure he is re-educated on that requirement.  Talk to your attorney about it.  ... Read More

One of you has to be the Plaintiff in the Divorce, and the other has to be the Defendant, so No, you cannot file together.   One of you would need to file the complaint, and then serve the other party.  Then there are additional steps that you would have to take to finish the divorce to include a court appearance.  You can look up North Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 50 and the local rules for your county to learn the steps you would need to take to do this on your own.  An attorney can make this process go alot smoother for you and can sometimes eliminate the requirement for you to appear in court altogether.  Please locate a local divorce attorney to schedule a free initial consultation to discuss the process more thoroughly.  You will receive much more information from an initial consultation, and afterward you can decide whether to retain the attorney or file on your own.  There is no obligation to hire the attorney after the consultation.... Read More

Hello. It sounds like the QDRO says if she dies, the payment to her ceases and is not revert back to being paid to you instead.  It depends on your pension whether they allow anything other than that.  Some pensions allow a choice and it should state it reverts back to you if she dies - but some do not have that option.  Ask your pension plan if they offer that option - for the payments to revert back to you if she dies before you.  If so, you can have an Amended QDRO drafted and ask the court to enter it and then you can send it to the plan (a certified copy) so you get the payments if she dies.  There is no change to her payments and there is no harm in that change so I would think the court would approve it.... Read More

Dear Anonymous: Although you can file for divorce in Florida, the only thing the courts in Florida can do is grant the divorce without dividing property, considering alimony or resolving any child issues if you have children.  That would mean those other issues would still be "open" and if you wish to get divorced I am sure you want to have all those issues resolved. In essence, the Florida Courts have no what is called "personal jurisdiction" over your spouse, since your spouse does not live in Florida, and (unless there are more facts) didn't live in Florida with you.  (there are certain other exceptions but too much to get into here...though probably not applicable). So, you would probably have to file  for divorce  where your wife still lives.   I would suggestyou contact an attorney in D.C. Best of luck, Cindy Vova Law Offices of Cindy S. Vova, P.A. www.vovalaw.com Broward: 954-316-3496 Boca Raton/Palm Beach:  561-925-2785... Read More

You may want to begin by finding your husband by using a private investigator, such as Information Network Associates (INA) in Harrisburg, PA. Once he is found, it will be a much easier process to file a divorce complaint and start a support case.  If you choose to retain an attorney first, it may cost you more money as the attorney will still need to attempt to find him.  If he cannot be found, an attorney will file a petition to serve by publication and attach a report from a private investigator concluding that he could not be located despite due diligence to find him as well as an affidavit signed by you as to what you did to try to locate him.  If a judge determines that there is nothing more that can be done to locate him, then permission will be granted to serve him by publication, and you will be required to publish notice of the proceedings in local newspapers in the area of his last known address. However, unless he is actually located, it will be very challenging (and expensive) to pursue any monetary claims against him.... Read More

Since your Husband has vacated the premises, he cannot make a current complaint about any abuse.  Any such complaint would be unsubtantiated and would not result in any final order of protection.  Thus, there should be no impact or bearing on your license. You should keep a journal of any and all interactions, which includes dates and times and summaries of events.  This should be done contemporaneously with any such events.  Keep copies of all texts, emails and other communications.   If you do not already have security cameras at the exterior and interior of your premises, you should get cameras to record any relevant footage. However, I recommend before you provide your husband with any more money voluntarily, you should have a consultation with respect to your rights and potential liabilities as well as any potential spousal support rights that your husband may have.... Read More

Good morning, Since the house was purchased prior to the marriage it is not a marital asset.  However, that does not mean you do not have a marital claim.  You do have a claim for some of the appreciation at the very least.  You would not be entitled to one-half the house in a divorce but you do have some legal rights. Let me know if you would like a further consultation.... Read More

The issue is whether you have an executed settlement agreement as part of the mediation process.  If yes, then the answer is: it's whatever the agreement states you're responsible for.  If it's silent on the issue, then you're not responsible for paying the loss.  If you don't have an executed agreemnt, then this is an issue which must be resolved in further mediation.  Schedule a consult with a Divorce Attorney in your area for a full assessment.... Read More

Spuosal supprt is based on multiple factors, including the length of the marriage, age and health of the parties, education, work experience, etc. His inability to maintain a job would certainly be factored in. Unlike child support, there is no hard and fast amount that can be calculated. An experienced family law lawyer would be able to discuss the considerations involved in your case, and assist you in protecting your assets during a separate maintenance case, or a divorce. I would be happy to discuss your situation with you.... Read More

The best way to find out if the action is still pending or has been disposed of is by checking with the county clerk. When you sthat that divorce is uncontested, are you saying that there are no issues with respect to child support, custody, spousal support, or equitable distribution of marital assets?   Did your wife retain an attorney or prepare the papers herself (pro se)?  You may want to contact the attorney or your ex-wife to find out the status. There are several affidavits that need to be submitted by both sides in order for a final judgment of divorce to be granted.  There are a number of other important forms that the plaintiff would need to submit as well.  ... Read More