Family Legal Questions

Thank you for your question. If the court Order (presumably your Final Judgment) left you and your ex-wife as tenants in common, each of you has a divisible half-interest in the property. She has no right to dispossess you from the property. Moving out your possessions, changing the locks, etc., are violations of your right as a tenant in common. You need to return to court as soon as possible to enforce your right under the Order (or Final Judgment). The attorney who handled your divorce should be able to help you. If not, as this is basic real property law, any good attorney in family law or real property law can assist you.... Read More

Yes, you can.  I don't see any reason why not.  However, if there is an outstanding warrant, you run the risk of being pick up if you don't turn yourself in.  This allows you to control the process and avoid the embarrassment of being arrested in a public place, at a time that you don't expect it.  Further, it is better to turn yourself in and bond out, at your convenience.  ... Read More

If the car is in your name, you have a right to go to the house, with the police to get the car.  If you have registration in your name, you can explain the situation to the police and ask if someone will go with you to get the car so you can surrender it to the dealer.  If his name is on the car or the registration, you may not be able to pursue this course of action.  Best of luck~... Read More

Dear Anonymous:        Unfortunately, Florida does not recognize common law marriage, which is when parties live together for a period of time and that time frame constitutes a de faacto marriage.  (Georgia has this, for example).         So, unless you own any property jointly you would only be entitled to those items that are titled in your name or titled jointly (in which case you'd have to divide them) or that that you own separately or  jointly and can prove that.         You would not be entitled to any type of support, such as alimony.  Sorry for the bad news.   Regards, Cindy S. Vova Law Offices of Cindy S. Vova, P.A.... Read More

I am guessing that you are married and living with your spouse and have decided to divorce and want to know if you can force your spouse out of the house by renewing the lease for the home being rented in your name alone. If my understanding of the setting is correct, you NEED to meet with a divorce lawyer immediately since your way of handling the issue will simply result in a fight and potentially a domestic violence setting. Simply by changing the name on the lease does not mean that you then have a right to throw your spouse out of her home or that it gives you greater rights to it especially if you earn more money than she does and she is financially dependant on you. If you want to end your marriage, do things the right way and meet with a divorce lawyer to learn what you can and cannot do at this stage and what your obligations / rights are as opposed to simply throwing her out and then finding yourself in a worse setting. ... Read More

To change the child's last name all you need is for the father to receive notice of the proceedings through the probate court, where you would file the request to amend the birth certificate. If you wanted the father's parental rights terminated, you would need to seek a stepparent adoption. Lack of contact for a year is a means to establish abandonment that will allow the court to grant the stepparent adoption.... Read More

You would need to seek guardianship over your sister. With Mom and (a) Dad in the picture it could be a two-front battle, but if it is in the child's best interests, it could be accomplished. The Court would also likely look at your stability, which seems favorable based upon your information provided.... Read More

The short answer to your question is "probably."  Under a series of Nevada cases, if grandparental custody or visitation rights are established before a termination of parental rights, death, or other event alters the parental custodial relationship, it survives that later event.  Obviously, no lawyer should give specific legal advice without reviewing the actual papers in question -- in your case the visitation agreement, and the TPR, and the adoption paperwork.  A full consultation with a qualified family law specialist would be a good idea.... Read More

Dear Anonymous: First caveat....although you have domesticated your judgment in Florida, typically the law of the state where the decree was entered applies.  A Florida judge would hear the matter but have to apply Illinois law.  As I am not admitted in Illinois, I can only answer this under Florida law. That said, this might involve interpretation of the terms "child education costs."  It is never a good idea to look at a few words of a contract (which is what a marital settlement agreement is)without reading the entire agreement.  The first general rule of contracts is that the court must give the plain meaning to the words .  However, if a court determines that  the language is ambiguous, then the court can seek parole (outside) evidence of the intent at the time. So, your starting point would be to read the entire provisions in context and then see if you think it is ambiguous.  If so, what did everyone mean at the time. Hopefully this will provide you some guidance.   Best of luck, Cindy S. Vova Law Offices of Cindy S. Vova, P.A.   ... Read More

Ms. Coulter:  There are many different kinds of pensions, each with its own rules, and most of them permit beneficiary designations; further, if you had a registered domestic partnership, the inheritance rules are the same as for a marriage.  For a recap, see the article Retirement Benefits for Legal Professionals: A Very Brief Primer (CLE, October 9, 2015), posted here and look at the Domestic Partnership page of our web site. We have a division called QDRO Masters; please call 702-438-4100, ask to speak with one of our QDRO Masters personnel, with some information about the specific pension involved, and they should be able to tell you what, if anything, you can do to collect on the survivorship interest of the pension involved.... Read More

The best way to handle this issue is to have a formal writing between you and the biological mother and step father, where they agree in a writing that they are waiving all claims to child support from you and that they will waive all claims for all child support arrears and that they will direct the probation department to vacate all arrears from the account and close out the probation department account. Absent a formal writing signed by all parties that directs the probation department to vacate any claim of arrears and to close out its account will not get rid of the arrearages outstanding. If the adoption is finalized, from that date forward, the probation department will acknowledge that it cannot continue to collect child support but unless directed to vacate all arrears up to that point, those arrears will remain and be collected. You must have a formal writing signed by you, the bioliogiocal mother and the step father and it must be in numbered paragragh form telling them exactly what is taking place - they are not going to accept your claims or even what you say they agreed upon - if it is not in a writing and signed, they cannot simply accept it.  ... Read More

In the absence of a court order, there are no rules in place governing the terms and conditions of your custodial arrangement.  Further, if the court has not addressed these issues, you don't have any legal basis to seek enforcement.  Lawyers.com offers general information and not legal advice.  Therefore, in order to protect your rights and the interest of your children, I suggest that you consult with a lawyer in your areas to discuss this matter in greater detail and obtain advice on what is necessary to discuss options, including return of the children.  Lawyers charge by the hour for consultations, therefore, you should be in a position to discuss fees in advance of setting up a meeting, to avoid any misunderstandings.  Best of luck ~... Read More

There are several issues with your planned course of action.  Under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Enforcement Act ("UCCJEA") the father can commence an action for custody/visitation here in New York, and you would have to return to allow the New York court to determine: (a) who should have custody; and (b) whether you should be permitted to relocate out of state with the child.  (Each of these are complicated issues so I won't attempt to deal with them here;  I have divorce guides on my website that might be helpful.)  Also, some judges are offended when a parent moves out of state without the Court's permision. The better course of action would be to reach a written agreement with the father in which he acknowledges and agrees that you are moving out of state.  That way he can't later claim you moved without him knowing about it or that you absconded with your child. Lacking that, you might want to start custody and child support proceedings in the NYS Family Courts (assuming they will accept new petitions, hopefully soon), get an order of cusoty, get a proper amount of child support, and get the court's permission to relocate. Good luck.... Read More

You will want to file a Petition for Guardianship by Extended Family under chapter 751 in Florida. The Florida court will need to take jurisdiction over the minor child and so this will be the easiest and most direct method of accomplishing that. As long as you are an extended family member and the parents have given their consent, you should be good. I hope this is helpful.... Read More

First, you should do nothing rashly or impetuously.  Find out your legal rights, obligations, and options, and then decide what is in the best interest of you and your children.  You are allowed to "relinquish" parental rights, but in Nevada that does not terminate your obligation of support, as explained here.  At the same place, you will see what is actually required for a Termination of Parental Rights court order, and decide whether that is something you wish to seek.  If so, or even if not, you should consult with a qualified family law specialist before making any decisions or taking any actions.... Read More

Presuming the two of you co-own the home, neither of you can "evict" the other, in normal times or during this pandemic.  Either of you could file for divorce, and seek a preliminary order for exclusive possession, as explained here, or if there is a history of actual or threatened violence, file for a Temporary Protective Order as explained here. In any event, you probably need to confer with a family law specialist.  The aphasia may make even that more difficult, so it may be necessary to use email or some alternate means of communication.  But you should not remain isolated an afraid; find out your rights, obligations, and options, and then decide what is in yoiur best interest going forward.... Read More

It is very unclear what "papers" you are referring to or what that has to do with a possible marriage.  It is possible that your question is best addressed to an immigration lawyer, but if your actual question concerns family law, I suggest you call a family law specialist and ask it as clearly and precisely as possible.... Read More

The question as phrased is a bit confusing.  It would seem to make sense to try to find a way to get done where you are everything that the judge (or the case plan) indicates is to be done where you were, and then file a motion asking for consent to stay where you moved.  To answer your question, the judge may not be able to "force you to move," but he can rule against you, or find the plan not followed, if in fact it is not followed or completed where you are.... Read More

If CPS filed a true nonsuit, then their entire case was dismissed along with any temporary orders entered. I do not know how they would legally name you sole managing conservator in a nonsuit. You may have been named SMC in a temporary order, but this appointment would go away with their dismissal of the case unless you had your own pleadings pending. I suggest you make an appointment to see a private attorney (to take a look at the procedural history) in order to give you accurate legal advice in this matter.  If their case was completely dismissed without final orders, then you are back to the legal status prior to their filing (your prior order is still in effect). ... Read More

Thank you for your inquiry. A “quick divorce” is possible under these circumstances, assuming that in the intervening three months of your marriage neither of you have purchased any real property or significant personal property, nor incurred any significant debts, either individually or jointly. I am also assuming your wife is not pregnant with a child. In addition to the above questions, the key to your ‘quick divorce’ request is two-fold: First, do you have an address for your wife where she can be served with court papers? Second, have you (or your wife, I have to ask) resided in Florida for six months prior to today? If the two answers are ‘yes’ and you have not purchased property or incurred debts that must be divided, you can proceed with the ‘quick’ divorce. If you wish, you may feel free to contact my office directly at (305) 461-5015 with your answers. We can discuss how to proceed if the answers are either ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to any of these questions.  ... Read More

It is not uncommon for parties to work out a framework of a deal and then ask a lawyer to then flesh out those terms into a formal settilement agreement and then assist in the filing of a complaint for divorce seeking enforcement of the settlement agreement signed by both parties. From a procedural standpoint, the next step is to have a consultation ( which inital consultation is free) with a partner in our firm to review the details of the marriage, assets, income settings, children, etc to then match up the framework of the deal against all of the issues that need to be addressed in an agreement ( based on the information provided in the consultation). Presuming everything has been addressed in the framework of the deal, we can then advise you on the retainer cost to prepare the proposed settlement agreement and complaint for divorce. ... Read More

Under the circumstances you described, I think she would have some difficulty terminating your parental rights and adopting your child. Now, I'm not trying to be funny when I say she probably describes the situation differently. If I read her description, maybe I would say an adoption is possible. The grounds that people usually use in a case like yours would be that the child was placed into DCS custody, which then I guess went to your mother-in-law, and that you have failed to remedy the conditions that lead to the child's removal from your test today. Your post says you have remedied those conditions, so that would be the big disagreement. You said you are working on getting to the place DSS said you needed to be. If it's been a few months that's OK, if it's been a couple years and you are still "working on it," you are getting closer to the kind of situation where a court could terminate your rights.... Read More