Legal Separation Legal Questions

I am not going to directly answer your question but will instead tell you that a 24 year old that is in this type of relationship with a 14 year old should go to jail.  This is beyond inappropriate.   to the extent a District Attorney becomes aware of this behavior, he or she will have the ultimate decision about how to proceed, and the 14 year old victim won't be able to directly control whether charges are filed.... Read More

You have some complex property issues involved and you should not enter into any agreement witjout fully understanding your rights.  You also may be entitled to more than your spouse is willing to admit in regards to the business property.  You should contact an attorney to discuss your options. ... Read More

  Dear Anonymous:    Although a number of states permit legal separation, Florida is not one of them.  In other words, there is no such thing as a legal separation.  You can either stay married or divorce.  Sometimes couples do a post nuptial instead of a divorce, but without more detail this cannot even be addressed.   Also, as to your husband's retirement, if it was all earned during the marriage, then typically the asset is split in half.  However, not knowing what type of retirement plan it is (pension or 401K type), without knowing what other assets and liabilities there are in the marriage,  and not knowing what the papers say, I cannot advise you to sign or not sign papers.       Because this may be a significant source of assets and/or support in your marriage and possible divorce, I would urge you to speak with a lawyer before signing anything.  You would need to get, at a minimum, copies of the papers your husband wants you to sign for the lawyer to review.  Once the papers are signed you may not be able to change anything so get the advice in advance. Best of luck, Cindy Vova Law Offices of Cindy S. Vova,  P.A Broward/Boca Raton 954-316-3496/561-962-2785      ... Read More

New York is a no-fault divorce state and you don't need proof of adultery- or any grounds- to file for divorce. You need to have been married in New York and meet other residency requirements, and you can file for divorce. It's impossible to say what you're entitled to without knowing the entire financial situation but generally, you're entitled to half of all marital assets. That includes anything that was acquired during the marriage, including pension contributions. The best thing to do is contact an attorney.... Read More

Unless the couple was married or had a registered domestic partnership, they need a child support/custody and visitation agreement, not a separation agreement. Although such a written agreement doesn't necessarily need to be done in court, if your son is concerned his ex won't follow it unless it is a court order signed by a judge, he should start a custody/visitation proceeding and he'll ultimately get a court ordered visitation schedule. The same goes for child support, but if he's the non-custodial parent he'll be paying the mother, so if she wants a court order she should file the support  petition.  Child support payments are set by law and calculated based on salary and the number of children. He's should minimally check with a lawyer to make sure he's paying the correct amount.... Read More