Ever since the United States Supreme Court ruled in the Obergefell case, same sex couples have been recognized in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Of course, there’s definitely a difference between a decision at the Supreme Court level being more or less forced upon the states involved and a decision made by the state’s own Supreme...
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The decisions that you make can affect your divorce. “My life is in your hands,” my clients tell me, tearfully, all the time. To some degree, of course, it’s true. What we do is important, it matters deeply to our clients, and can have long lasting personal and financial implications. Still, when it comes to...
Divorce is difficult, especially at the beginning of the process, and a lot of people need a little extra divorce help. Without knowing what to expect, it’s difficult to begin to plan and make the types of decisions that need to be made to move a case forward. You want to be sure that you’re...
In any kind of legal case, but particularly a divorce case, there’s a lot of paperwork involved. Depending on the type of case you’re going through—whether it’s custody, a contested divorce, or an uncontested divorce—the type of paperwork may look a little bit different, but the end result is the same: there’s a whole lot...
Thinking of going down to the courthouse and filing your own petitions for custody and visitation is pretty daunting. Unless you’re a practicing attorney (preferably one with experience handling custody cases in Virginia), it’s scary and confusing. There’s a lot at stake–obviously, because we’re talking about your kids here–and you want, more than anything, to...
This job (like most things in life) is full of moments that teach me things. Almost every day, I have a moment where I think, “Wow, that’s something I never thought of before!” I make note of it, and move on. It’s experiences like this that make me a better attorney. Usually, it’s just something...
Spousal support is tricky. In fact, in a lot of cases, spousal support is the sticking point. It is very often the difference between a case that we can settle fairly easily, and one that we have to take to court to let the judge decide. In many cases, one spouse needs it, and the...
Lots of couples talk to a marriage counselor as an attempt to repair their marriage. In fact, in my years of experience, I have never met a single person who didn’t tell me how hard they tried to fix their marriage before they wound up in my office. Is it possible to save your marriage,...