There are probably very few things as devastating as losing custody of your children. As a mother myself, I can only imagine. In my experience, this happens pretty rarely, and (I’m sorry to say) often not without reason. In the majority of cases, the parties agree about how custody and visitation will be handled between...
After you’ve lost child custody in Virginia
I’ve been guilty of it, too, in the past. I’ve asked a friend, who confided in me about the misery involved in her relationship, why she stays. Why she doesn’t just go, because doesn’t she know she deserves better? These days, I try not to. Because I know it won’t help. Because I know...
I was reading a quote the other day that said that the best thing you can do for a narcissist is to give him a child. That was it – that was the end of the quote – but it really did get me thinking. It probably is the best thing you can do, because...
Divorce – or separation, or just a breakup – is a period of time that, for many people, comes with a change of address. Whether you’re actually divorcing your former partner or whether you’ve broken up but share children in common, its pretty normal for you to go to a ‘live-in’ situation to an...
There is nothing quite as difficult as determining custody and visitation. As a mother myself, I can completely understand. When you’ve never had to divide your time with your children; when there never was ‘his’ time and ‘her’ time before, grappling with this new kind of divide can be incredibly difficult. How do you...
In a divorce, a lot of things are set in stone – regardless of whether the case is finalized by a signed separation agreement negotiated by the parties, or whether the case goes all the way to trial and the judge issues a final order. Things in equitable distribution, like the division of the retirement...
No two divorces are exactly the same and they don’t always follow the same pattern. A divorce isn’t like a train on the tracks; it’s more like a roller coaster. There are a lot of highs and lows in between when the divorce proceedings are initiated and before the divorce is finalized. Much like...
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...