Mullins Wil R Attorney At Law

It’s important to remember that custody and guardianship are two different things in the eyes of the law. While custody often refers to which parent will keep the child with them after a divorce, guardianship is typically when a non-parent will act in the child’s best interest.

In today’s world, almost anyone can obtain a divorce in almost any situation you can imagine, and there is virtually no stigma against it. That’s a positive development, since it used to be nearly impossible to win a divorce and even harder to avoid the stigma that used to exist against divorcees.

While a child’s parent may be comfortable with them living with you at the moment, their mood could quickly change. Without obtaining legal guardianship of the child, they may get shuffled from home to home at their parent’s whim.

Unfortunately, not all divorce proceedings are simple matters of signing and filing paperwork. Let’s talk about how retaining a divorce attorney right from the start can help you navigate the complicated process of ending a marriage.

Did you know that if you are a guardian, you may be expected to report every year on your actions in that role? Its true- and that is a good way to ensure that guardianship is something that remains a safe, smart option and to ensure that such a powerful position is less likely to be abused.

While it’s possible to find software programs to generate legal documents, this isn’t always the right way to go. Just because the form has all the right verbiage doesn’t mean you’ll know the correct way to fill in the blanks.

Most states allow for an annulment of a marriage if the ceremony was against the law. For example, it is illegal for a person to have more than one spouse or to marry a blood relative. Both those cases qualify for an annulment in most areas of the country.

So what are the tax laws regarding child support? Since all parents have a legal duty to support their children, all child support payments are not considered income. Thus, the payments are neither tax deductible by the payer or taxed as income of the recipient.

Divorce statistics are much more complicated than they appear. Many experts cite a 50 percent divorce rate in the U.S. However, that is only a figure for the accumulation of divorces in a single year. In 2010, there were approximately 2.4 million marriages and 1.2 million divorces.

Even the simplest divorce cases can include complex issues that make the presence of a family law attorney a necessity. For example, your spouse has agreed to pay monthly support, but do you know to insist on disability and life insurance policies? That way, the support payments aren’t interrupted if your spouse is injured or killed.

Guardianship also applies to refugee children who are in America without their parents. When you obtain guardianship over a minor, you will be responsible for their general well being, health care, schooling, clothing, food and housing.

Knowing how much the loss of one’s freedom to make many decisions can be, it’s important to make that moment as easy as it can be. Choosing a caring attorney can help you find legal means to do it in the least painful way possible.

Are you looking for the fastest way to get divorced? As long as you and your spouse agree, we can handle the paperwork showing the judge that all issues regarding division of property and custody have a proposed settlement.