Emotionally, going through a divorce or custody case (or, worse, a divorce AND custody case) is easily one of the most difficult things that you will face in your adult life. Many therapists even liken the experience of going through divorce to a death – it’s just that traumatic. Even a good divorce –...
Parentification in Virginia Divorce and Custody Cases
If you’re still hoping to save your marriage, you’re not alone. In fact, that’s something I hear all the time. One thing that I think is universally true is that every single woman who decides to get a divorce has to do everything she feels she has to do in order to try to save...
Remember the ending scene in When Harry Met Sally? Harry realizes he loves Sally and wants to be with her, and he says, “When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with someone, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.” It’s kind of like that...
A lot of people have questions about legal separation, what it means, and when it actually begins. Oh, and also – why does it even matter? Being separated is important, because for most grounds for divorce (except for adultery, which technically qualifies you for an ‘immediate divorce’ – but don’t get excited, it won’t...
Though I’ve only ever practiced family law in Virginia, I’m pretty sure that everywhere – Virginia included – requires grounds in order to finalize a divorce. In Virginia, those grounds can be either fault based or no fault based. Whether you choose to file on fault or no fault depends, of course, on the facts;...
My college roommate/best friend texted me this morning to ask whether, in my professional opinion, a recent transgression of her husband’s was grounds for divorce. She included a picture, of a bottle of syrup, with the name “Vermont Maid” proudly displayed across the bottle. I should probably also mention: my friend, Erin, is from Vermont....
A woman I met with the other day asked me a good question, “If he abandons us, will that hurt his chances for custody?” She went on to tell me that, thirty some odd years ago, when her mom got divorced, her attorney gave her that advice. Now, facing divorce herself and with a small...
Most people, at some point or other, really want to explore all of their options when it comes to divorce. For most people, too, that starts with carefully considering fault based grounds. They’re definitely appealing. For a lot of people, selecting from among the fault based grounds of divorce feels almost compulsory, if those grounds...