Articles

What happens in an uncontested divorce?

Basically, in Virginia, you can get divorced in one of two ways. Either you guys duke it all out in front of a judge, who ultimately rules on how everything will get divided in your case, or, alternatively, you and your husband reach an agreement regarding how everything will be divided. In the latter case...

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This year, for the first year ever, Hofheimer Family Law sponsored a scholarship for divorced and/or divorcing women who were looking to go back to school. We wanted to do it both to honor our former managing partner, Kristen D. Hofheimer, who passed away in January of 2019 after a long struggle with breast cancer,...

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Social Media and the Kids

In some families, it’s a constant tug-o-war where the kids are concerned. Almost every issue that it is possible to fight over can and, in some cases, will be fought over. I find that, more and more often, the children’s social media presence is one of those issues. One parent wants to share (or, overshare,...

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Will getting a job impact my alimony?

I feel you – I’m a person who likes to take action, too. If you’re separating or headed quickly that direction, you’re probably wondering what changes you’ll need to make to your day to day in order to be able to afford the kind of lifestyle to which you have grown accustomed. In most cases,...

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How is debt divided in Virginia divorce?

After the market crashed in 2008, we handled a lot of cases where there was more debt than anything else. It was terrible. Houses were underwater, and I’ve never seen such high credit card debt. In fact, at that point, it seemed like a lot of people decided to stay together because they really couldn’t...

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Virginia Name Changes and Stepparent Adoptions

So, your child’s biological father is a deadbeat, and now you’ve found Mr. Wonderful (not Mr. Wonderful of the Shark Tank variety, to be clear). He is willing to adopt your child, and to have her assume his last name. Isn’t it amazing? But is it really that easy? In most cases, no! It’s actually...

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How much control does he have over where I live?

“Control” is a common theme in divorce and custody cases. The truth is, though, that if you and your soon to be ex husband have children in common, there are often a lot of strings attached, though you may be surprised to find that it’s not your husband pulling the strings – it’s the court....

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Will my husband return my children?

There’s nothing worse in a contested custody case between the time when the parents separate or otherwise break up and when custody is determined by the judge (or agreed upon by the parties). It’s a legal gray area. Technically, as parents of the child, both of you have the legal right to do whatever you’d...

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