Can I have my family law case heard in the family court?

Family law cases can be a little more confusing than cases in other areas of law because – depending on the type of case – you might find yourself in either circuit court or juvenile court.  Though some states call juvenile court ‘family court,’ and I’ve found that’s the way a lot of people refer...

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The legal process is not at all intuitive, so if you’re wondering what to expect – well, that makes a lot of sense.  Custody cases are some of the more challenging cases to navigate, too, because they’re handled in juvenile and domestic relations district courts, which – if you’ve had any run ins with the...

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The kids live with me. Do I have sole custody?

Custody and visitation can be sort of a tricky subject and, if you look on the internet or poll friends on social media, you can get a wide range of (not necessarily correct) answers.  It’s always wise to at least talk to an attorney when you have legal questions, rather than relying on (well-meaning) non-attorneys,...

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Single moms are always under a lot of pressure.  For one thing, life – and parenting – is hard.  For another, they’re constantly subject to the judgment of others. One way I see this play out – unfairly, in my opinion – to the detriment of mothers and children is in how other people like...

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I’m military. Can I even file my own divorce?

  In some ways, a divorce is a divorce.  Certainly, if we’re looking at things procedurally, one divorce doesn’t differ all that much from another, though there’s also no question that a military divorce involves considerations that civilian divorces don’t. Mostly, military divorces mean that there are categories of assets – BAH, SBP, TSP, the...

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What should my first steps be pre-divorce?

Most of the questions that we get – at least in the early stages of a separation or divorce – is a basic one.  “What should I do first?” It’s a good question, too, because I think it’s always smart to go into something knowing what to expect and having at least the outlines of...

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Does Virginia recognize common law marriage?

I used to get lots of questions about common law marriage.  Lately, well, not so much – until the other day.  A woman asked me what, in my opinion, was a very perceptive question about whether marriage is designed to be a safeguard to protect spouses (and, in particular, lesser earning spouses). Most of the...

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