A Marriage Planning Agreement is a negotiated contract between you and your spouse, either before or during your marriage, which memorializes the expectations of the couple in a legally enforceable document. It is similar to a business partnership agreement, except instead of the terms of a business, the parties are agreeing on their expectations for one another in the marital relationship.
Most attorneys (and many other professional service providers), when contracting at an hourly rate, will require an up-front payment known as a retainer. The retainer is placed in the attorney’s trust account and then used to pay for legal fees earned by the attorney and expenses related to the client’s matter. A retainer is the client’s way of guaranteeing to the lawyer that the client is financially able to employ the lawyer’s services and is committed to funding the matter.
By far, the most common question I get from people who practice consensual, risk-aware BDSM is what effect their nontraditional sexuality may have on their custody and parental rights. Unfortunately, there is no easy answer. In child custody matters, social workers, judges, and other administrative personnel often have a great deal of discretion, so individual preferences and prejudices can often influence the decisions that get made.
Divorce mediation is a method that spouses in New Jersey or Pennsylvania can employ to settle their differences in a divorce action. Mediation is a process in which an impartial third party, known as the mediator, facilitates a discussion between the parties with the goal of reaching an agreement regarding parenting time, equitable division of property, spousal support, child support, and any other issues involved in the divorce.
A New Jersey divorce matter begins with pleadings, proceeds through discovery, and culminates in trial. It is a complicated process, and the best way to navigate it is to contact an experienced family attorney. An attorney will assist you through the following stages of litigation…
Mediation is often a lower-cost, less acrimonious alternative to litigating a divorce. A skilled mediator can help parties communicate, focus their issues, and ultimately resolve their matter before any involvement in the court system. It is a very useful process and one that I recommend to most clients.
Currently, Collingswood, New Jersey, where my practice is located, is debating an ordinance severely limiting the ability of its residents to offer short-term home rentals. The current ordinance, as proposed, limits rentals to 24 days per year and imposed burdensome reporting and inspection requirements.
It’s an unfortunate truth that divorce can get expensive. Given that, it’s no surprise that some inquiries have found that over 50% of litigants in family court are representing themselves, with some estimates as high as two out of three. While it is never advisable to go to court without a skilled and experienced attorney, for some parties, it is simply not an option.