Preventing Your Husband from Hiring a Good Family Law Attorney

Once you have an appointment – like an initial consultation – with a lawyer, that lawyer cannot meet with, give advice to, or represent the opposing party.  In a divorce or custody case, if a wife meets with five of the top local divorce attorneys, none of those five will be able to represent her...

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Kids keep you busy.  If it’s not one season, it’s another.  And between the after-school events, social activities, birthday parties, sports, summer camps, classes, and other activities, it can be overwhelming shuttling the kids to and from all of it. Keeping up with the calendar alone can be challenging enough, but for separated and divorced...

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Mediation v. Settlement Conference

Even when it’s only for a relatively short period, the time that exists in the space between when you and your soon-to-be ex decide to separate and when you reach a signed separation agreement is a particularly painful, anxiety-filled one. All the while that you’re hoping, desperately hoping, that you’ll be able to resolve things...

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Virginia Separate Debt in Divorce

We talked the other day about debt when it is marital and how it is often divided in a divorce.  But marital ASSETS are categorized as either separate or marital before they are divided – so what happens in the event that debt is separate?  It’s a good question. Typically, separate property is anything that...

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Marital and Hybrid Property in Virginia Divorce

In a divorce, we divide marital property.  What constitutes marital property can vary from state to state, so you should familiarize yourself with the laws in your particular state – or Commonwealth, as in the case of Virginia, where I practice. Though I imagine that the words may vary but the specific application is similar...

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Holiday Custody and Visitation

The holidays are a tough time in general, but they’re even tougher if you’re new to the whole separation and divorce thing.  The first set of holidays is, I think, the hardest, but that doesn’t mean that each year doesn’t present its own difficulties. My advice with respect to holiday custody and visitation is the...

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Can I move out of the marital home?

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...

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