Separating from a spouse or partner when you have children who are not yet old enough to look after themselves is often an anxious and challenging experience. In Massachusetts, there is a clear distinction between the rights of married couples who are going through a...
Deciding Pet Custody in a Divorce Case in Massachusetts
Parting with your spouse may be very painful or good riddance, but never with your innocent pet. For couples who have both developed a deep emotional connection with their pet, the subject can be quite touchy considering the need not only to restart your love life...
How Divorce Affects Trusts in Massachusetts
Most couples arrange their financial affairs so that in the event that one of them dies prematurely, the other spouse is the major or only beneficiary. Shared children may change the arrangements that spouses make so that children are taken care of if one or the other...
Why is it Always Important to Leave a Mediation With a Signed Agreement in MA
Why agree to mediation? Mediation can be used in all sorts of circumstances where there is a disagreement or dispute between two parties. Mediation is rarely used for criminal cases. Examples of circumstances where mediation can be of use include: disputes between...
Divorce : Filing a Counter Claim in Massachusetts
A divorce is often a messy, complicated and stressful business. Decisions have to be made about assets, child custody, child and spousal support. Ideally, these decisions are made rationally and sensibly and an agreement made which suits both parting spouses and made...
How Does Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Work in the Case of a Divorce in Massachusetts?
Divorces are rarely so disputed that they end in litigation. In fact, there are several ways that a disputed divorce settlement can be resolved without the very public, stressful and expensive need to go to court. Alternative dispute resolution, or ADR for short, is a...
Can I Challenge an Unfair Divorce Settlement in Massachusetts?
Divorce is by its very nature often messy, emotionally fraught and frustrating. Somehow or other an agreement has to be made about shared assets, property and child custody. The longer a couple has been together, the greater the number of children and the more...
Changing Your Name – or Your Child’s – After a Divorce in Massachusetts
As if divorce wasn’t stressful enough, there are rules concerning changing your name after divorce and the names of any children you have physical custody for. In fact, many spouses who get divorced may not change their names at all and decide to keep their married...
Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements: What are the Differences?
The future financial relationship between couples aiming to tie the knot can be tricky. Even when the two people start out married life more or less equal in assets, income and prospects, things can change over the period of married life. The arrival of children,...
What Does Family Law Cover in Massachusetts?
Family law is a category of mainly civil law that involves relationships or conflicts between members of a family, e.g. spouses, civil law partnerships, children and parents. Family law cases may overlap with criminal law occasionally, e.g. if there are cases of child...
Child Custody Arrangements for the Summer Vacation in Massachusetts
The long summer school break, nine weeks of it, is rapidly approaching. No doubt kids have been looking forward to this particular summer break for good reason. The pandemic put a damper on any kind of summer fun last year, but things, while still not exactly back to...
Can A Prenuptial Agreement In Massachusetts Be Unenforceable?
40 to 50 percent of married couples in the United States divorce. A well-rounded and executed prenup is likely to save couples significant resources, time, and expenses. By entering into a prenuptial agreement, individuals intending to marry can better spell out their...
Divorce In Massachusetts: Equitable Doesn’t Necessarily Mean 50/50
Couples getting divorced in Massachusetts must deal with three issues before they can be legally separated. These issues are related to parenting/custody, alimony, and division of property & debts. Lawful distribution of property can be a complicated process,...
COVID-19: Divorce And Custody Issues In Massachusetts
The coronavirus pandemic continues to have a ripple effect on various aspects of life, placing added strain on marriages and worsening relationships between co-parents. People have lost jobs, shut down their businesses, and watch their loved one's struggle, all due to...
The Child Custody Order Process in Massachusetts
When couples decide to separate, or when a separation occurs because one of the partners decides to quit for reasons of their own, one of the more difficult sets of decisions that has to be made is what to do about shared children. Who should they live with? Who will...
Property Separation in a Massachusetts Divorce
Property Separation in a Divorce in Massachusetts The longer a married couple has been together, the more likely that they have acquired property together and their financial affairs have become entwined. This means that if the couple then decides to go through a...
Vacation Time After Divorce in Massachusetts
Vacation Time After Divorce in Massachusetts Couples who have a divorce have to think about what they are going to do with their joint children after divorcing. The younger the children are at the time of separation, the greater the potential harmful effect on their...
Living Apart as Grounds for Divorce in Massachusetts
Living Apart as Grounds for Divorce in Massachusetts Divorce is rarely as pleasant a procedure as the marriage that preceded it, although for at least one, and probably both spouses, it may come as a relief, allowing the two people to move on in life. Marriage is an...
How Common Law Couples Can Protect Themselves in Massachusetts
Like everyone else, you have probably heard the term "common law marriage," at one point or another. But, what does it actually mean? First, let's deal with the myths: Everyone thinks that if you live together for a certain amount of time, you automatically become...
How Divorce Can Affect Estate Planning In Massachusetts
You and your spouse have decided to go your separate ways. You've told your family and friends, hired an experienced Massachusetts divorce attorney and, last but not least, you have made it official on Facebook. At first, it seems simple - you both want different...