I hear the same objection all the time: “But my husband says he won’t sign an agreement unless I waive child support.” They’re upset. They’re scared. They don’t know what to do. Most are loathe to accept any kind of financial assistance from their child’s father anyway, but they’re still not quite sure how they’ll...
Waiving child support in a Virginia separation agreement
Child support is complicated. On the one hand, in many cases it isn’t an issue, because it’s based on a formula, and the formula is binding on our courts. On the other hand, it is an issue, because when you get into shared physical custody, for example, the level of support a paying parent would...
On Monday, we talked about some financial steps women can take to begin to prepare for their divorce and custody cases. Though there aren’t perfect answers to these questions in many cases, there are things you can do (make sure you’ve read the article!) to help as you begin to think about your case strategy...
You can plan to buy a house. You can plan to get a new job. You can plan to go to school. For many of the major transitions in life, it’s possible to plan ahead. Most people, though, don’t really plan for divorce. For most women, they got married expecting it to last forever. When...
Guardians ad litem are tricky. But they’re often necessary. And, perhaps even more to the point, we often don’t have a choice – they’re appointed in cases when a judge deems it necessary based on the best interests of the child, so sometimes, we just have to grin and bear it. It’s scary, to trust...
On Wednesday, we talked about your first custody court date – otherwise known as your initial appearance – in juvenile court. You know, that first date in, where you presented the details to the judge and set a trial date. It’s a common misconception that the first custody court date is going to be the...
On Wednesday, we talked about ballpark costs in a custody case. Today, we’re going to talk about ballpark costs in a divorce. Luckily for you, estimating costs in a divorce is slightly easier than in a custody case. After all, with divorce, there’s a finish line – when you get divorced. (Custody cases aren’t like...
Everyone (and I do mean everyone) wants us to give them just a “ballpark” figure for how much their case might cost. In some cases, that’s an easier thing to do than others. But, even so, costs can be a difficult thing to estimate. There are a lot of variables involved. There are a lot...