What is a QDRO?
Divorce attorneys take care of a lot of the headaches related to divorces, including, but not limited to, dividing retirement accounts. Retirement is, in some ways, a complicated issue. In some ways, it isn’t – because, in general, you get half the marital share of what was earned, and that’s not all that negotiable –…
Filed under: After Divorce
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What happens after I retain a Virginia divorce lawyer?
You don’t exactly go out and hire an attorney every day. In fact, for many people, it may be a once in a lifetime experience. Sure, it’s not a trip to Bora Bora or a chance to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef, but it’s a first – and a one time deal – for a…
Filed under: Divorce
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What is an answer and counterclaim?
It can be confusing to know and understand all the steps in the Virginia divorce process, much less what timelines are associated or how the court requires you to respond. I’m tempted to say, “Hey, that’s what I went to law school for,” but that’s not actually true. That kind of thing isn’t taught…
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What does a notary do? Do I need a notary?
I often find that there is a lot of confusion about the role of a notary in a divorce and/or custody case. We use notaries ALL the time; in fact, notaries often are involved in our agreements, affidavits, and other important documents that go to the court. For that reason, many of our staff…
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Can I refuse to send my kids to visitation?
I first started writing articles about COVID-19 related concerns back in March of 2020, never expecting that an entire year later I’d still be dealing with concerns related to the ongoing pandemic. Custody and visitation issues are some of the biggest that we face in family law, especially when parents share children between two different…
Filed under: Child Custody
Tag with: best interests of the child | child custody | child support | coparenting | court order | custody agreement | DAD | factor 6 | MOM | parenting plan | parenting time | refuse visitation
Harassment during Virginia Divorce
My sister in law asked me a question the other day – for a friend of a friend – and it really irritated me. Not that she would ask me a question; that’s fine, we’re really pretty close. But the question itself irked me. Her friend had a friend, from a really long time ago,…
Filed under: Divorce
Tag with: affidavits | criminal | custody | divorce | evidence | family law | family law lawyer | harrassment | notarized | protective order | spousal support | trial | virginia | witness
What does uncontested divorce mean?
On Wednesday, we discussed what a contested divorce means. We touched a little bit, too, on uncontested divorce – because it’s hard to understand one without the other. Contested refers to a divorce where the parties have not reached an agreement about how the assets and liabilities will be divided; in an uncontested divorce, on…
Filed under: Divorce
Tag with: affidavit | circuit court | contested | court | divorce | paperwork | qdro | retainer | uncontested | virginia
How far ahead of my trial date do I need to retain a family law attorney?
I get a lot of questions about cost in family law cases. I get questions about attorney’s fees, retainers, how to save money, how to pay for the case, and even how to get pro bono help (seriously, though, don’t count on it). It really runs the gamut. And I get it. It’s a…
Filed under: Divorce
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What’s in your divorce seminar that I can’t find on Google?
I got this question the other day – what’s in the divorce seminar that I can’t find on Google – and it made me laugh a little. In one sense, of course, literally everything you need to know about divorce in Virginia probably IS already in Google. In fact, as you probably are also already…
Filed under: Divorce
Tag with: attorney | custody | divorce | free divorce book | lawyer | seminar | separation | women only