It’s scary how common post-separation abuse is – but it’s something that we see over and over, even in cases where before separation there had never been any overt domestic violence. I don’t want to be a fearmonger – gosh, nothing of the sort! – but I do want to encourage you to stay...
What if he’s stalking me?
Virginia is restrictive when it comes to divorce, just because of the waiting period required before you can even file for a no fault divorce. Here in the Commonwealth, you have to be separated for ONE year before you can finalize a divorce using the fault based grounds of cruelty, apprehension of bodily hurt,...
Even if you’ve been unhappy for a really long time, it’s sometimes hard to put a label on your relationship, especially if that label is “abusive.” Its kind of like rape. We all understand what it is, but, at the end of the day, often have a hard time describing our own experiences in these...
Domestic violence is everywhere. It’s a lot more prevalent than most people think, which is pretty alarming. When I started here, over a decade ago now, as a brand new baby lawyer, I was definitely surprised at how often it really happens. When I speak to women who have suffered from domestic abuse, they often...
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....
It’s not one that we see all the time (in fact, we prefer not to have cruelty come up!), but, in Virginia, cruelty is grounds for divorce. Cruelty can mean a lot of different things to a lot of people; in fact, I think most of us can agree that to verbally or emotionally abuse...