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Recent Blog Posts
Pet Custody in Divorce
According to San Antonio Magazine, the "late author Nora Ephron once compared having a baby to throwing a hand grenade into a marriage." This could be one reason that more and more married couples are opting to not have children, and those that do are less likely to have more than two. According to the U.S. Census Bureau Statistical Abstract, in 1980 there were 28,528,000 families in America without their own children. By 2010, this number had risen dramatically to 43,615,000. Similarly, the average number of people per American family dropped from 3.29 in 1980 to 3.16 in 2010. Arguably, this makes divorce easier—couples without children who choose to split have far less issues to decide upon, namely child custody and child support. Yet couples without children aren't necessarily going it alone. For many childless couples, pets have become "replacement" children. And deciding pet custody issues can often be as complicated as child custody.
According to a publication released by the Michigan State University College of Law, "pets are considered to be personal property, capable of human ownership and control." This means that the laws regarding pet custody during divorce are meant to benefit the humans in the relationship, not necessarily the pet—unlike the laws regarding child custody. And yet because pets are beginning, in many cases, to be regarded as highly as children in some relationships, some courts are beginning to change the perception that pets should be regarded as property. These courts are, according to the MSU publication, "willing to treat pets more like children." This has, so far, been seen most often when considering custody of dogs. Courts have also, according to MSU, "awarded shared custody, visitation, and alimony payments to the owners."
Cohabitation on the Rise, Can Lead to Divorce
The days of living separately before marriage are long gone in the United States, according to a recent Center for Disease Control (CDC) report that was published on CBS News. The rise in cohabitation before marriage is initiated mostly by women, according to the CDC; "48 percent of women were living with their significant other but not married to them." This is, according to CBS, a "sharp increase from the 43 percent reported in 2002 and the 35 percent that reported the same situation in 1995." A sociologist at John Hopkins University told USA Today that before the recent numbers were released, it was thought that the United States "has long had the shortest cohabiting relationships of any wealthy nation." And now these relationships are lengthening.
The CDC findings were calculated after following the relationships of nearly 12,300 women between the ages of 15 and 44 between 2006 and 2010. "Seventy-four percent of 30-year-olds said that they had cohabited with a partner. Fifty-five percent said they did it by the age of 25," according to CBS News.
Women Likely to Lose Insurance After Divorce
The worst of a divorce may make you sick—and leave you uninsured to pay for it, according to US News and World Report. According to a study released by the University of Michigan and reported in US News and World Report, "about 115,000 women lose their private health insurance after a divorce." Researchers came to the conclusion after analyzing data from 1996 to 2007, on women aged 26 to 64. There are approximately 1 million divorces in the United States each year, and a majority of women receive health insurance coverage through their husband's employer. Lead author of the study Bridget Lavelle said in a news release that this alone makes the impact on women "quite substantial" in the event of a divorce.
The study specifically pointed to the fact that about 65,000 women lose all health insurance coverage in the months following divorce. Other women are subsequently able to qualify for low-income insurance plans such as Medicaid. The figure points to the fact that six months after divorce "nearly one-quarter of women who were insured as dependents on their husband's employer-based coverage are uninsured." Women with their own employer-based insurance are less likely to lose coverage (11 percent instead of 17 percent), but are not immune. New financial hardships that occur because of the divorce may make it difficult for women to afford whatever share they were paying of their employer-based plan.
Divorced women aren't the only people who lack health insurance plans, of course: according to the University of Michigan National Poverty Center, as of 2011 "nearly 50 million American lacked health insurance coverage, leaving many individuals with limited access to medical care and vulnerable to acquiring medical debt."
Figuring out financial details of your divorce, and how to keep important assets like insurance after divorce, are questions best explored with the expertise of a qualified attorney. If you or someone you know is considering divorce, contact a dedicated Texas divorce attorney today.
Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Texas Mother Uses Stun Gun to Discipline Teenage Son
Texas newspaper Austin-American Statesman first reported the story in early March about a Pflugerville woman who is facing a felony injury to a child charge after reportedly using a stun gun to taser her 14-year-old son four times. The affidavit claims that the son was punished after he went to play basketball without permission. Kimira Hysaw, 32, allegedly used a pink stun gun in order to discipline her son, whom she calls a "handful." She also claims that she threatens him with it often, and that she doesn't "even know where [her] child is half the time." After telling this to authorities, she refused to speak more of the incident. The New York Daily Times claims that the event was first reported by the 4-year-old daughter, who told her teacher about the incident and drew a pink stun gun, saying that it was kept in her mother's purse. She also told them that her brother was tased four times by her mother, including once in the head, while her father held him down. When the son was questioned, Texas authorities noticed burn marks and other injuries consistent with stun guns on his back and arms. Unfortunately, the son was uncooperative, stating that he doesn't get involved with his mother's business. Hysaw and her husband have children ranging in age from 4 to 18 years old. The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services declined to comment on the pending case, but did state they usually remove children from homes being investigated for their own safety. Causing injury to anyone is a very serious offense. If there is violence in your family, a domestic violence attorney can help with orders of protection. Victims of any attack resulting in a personal injury should speak to an Austin family law attorney today to start working on your case.
Russians demand return of brother of adopted boy who died in Texas
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Parental Rights in Same Sex Marriage
Children are the most important people to their parents. Not only are they doted upon, but they are taken care of every moment of every day. When a single parent shares this gift with their significant other, it is a true sign of trust and a family being built together. So when one parent is not allowed to legally jointly raise the child with their significant other, it denies them that family oneness.
According to the Chicago Tribune, an Austrian lesbian couple wants to jointly raise one partner's child together. The boy was born out of wedlock in 1995 and the three have been a family for a while. However, Austria would not allow this in 2007, so the couple sought the higher courts. They won their case finally in the European Court for Human Rights. They said the only reason why the couple was not given the right non-married heterosexual couples were given was strictly based on sexual orientation. This definitely discriminated against gay people.
The ruling is final meaning Austria must comply in the decision made by the European court. The court also order financial retribution to the couple of 10,000 euros, about $13,400, in damages and over 28,000 euros in expenses. Hopefully, the couple and child can now live in peace and as a family – legally.
Recent Tax Changes that can Affect Divorce
In order to remove the threat of the fiscal cliff in the beginning of 2013, Congress enacted the American Taxpayer Relief Act. This new legislation stopped tax increases for the middle class as well as budget cuts to important programs. While overall this is good news, it could impact your divorce regarding how alimony affects your income and the amount of taxes levied against split property.
Spousal support is different from child support it is usually declared by the receiver and deducted by the payer. This is important to know when reaching a divorce settlement how these payments can result in more taxes. Structuring your payments can result in lower taxes and ultimately save you money. Sometimes it is more beneficial to take a lump sum payment instead of monthly checks because they are non-taxable, but you should make sure that you can maintain your standard of living this way.
Family Law – How to Be Married to An Entrepreneur
Love leads us to bliss: togetherness, fun and laughter. You promise to take the good and the bad. But did you take the entrepreneur?
An entrepreneur is one who owns their own business through and through. Most times the business is what they eat, breath, sleep and drink. It becomes the life of the person who owns it. It is a very admirable feat, however, it needs to be clear to the incoming spouse what it all entails to be the spouse of an entrepreneur.
First, ask questions. Get to know what the business is all about, what your role will be, what the hours are, how much money goes INTO the business and the stress level it causes your future spouse. Find out how much information you can actually handle. More questions are bound to come up – ASK!
Find another entrepreneur couple who can support the two of you – a mentor couple, per se. They will be able to share their tricks to marital bliss in tough times. They will be able to listen when frustrations arise and give sound advice.
Divorce in Texas: The Basics
According to top10stop.com, Texas has the second highest number of divorces in the country on average each year, at 77,000. That number, of course, is inflated due to the large population of Texas—the only state not in the top five number of divorces included in the top five population is California—but it still means that a large percentage of Texans face divorce each year. According to the Texas Vital Statistics Unit (VSU), a unit of the Texas Department of State Health Services, the crude divorce rate in the state increased slightly from 3.3 per 1,000 residents in 2005 to 3.4 per 1,000 residents in 2006. There were 79,469 divorces in the state in 2006. 
The procedure for filing for divorce in Texas is more or less standard when compared to other states. The most important first step if you're considering divorce is to contact a Texas divorce attorney, because no matter how much research you do, divorce is a complicated process best undergone with the assistance of a professional. According to divorcenet.com, the second step of filing for divorce in Texas is for one spouse to file an Original Petition for Divorce with the court. At that time, the spouse can file a temporary restraining order if necessary. If no restraining order was filed, the other spouse has 20 days to file an "Answer." In that 20-day period, it's imperative that the non-filing spouse also obtains a qualified attorney—even if he or she is reluctant for the divorce.
Establishing Paternity
Why establish paternity?
- According to Texas law, a child born to two parents who are not married has no legal father. When the parents complete an Acknowledge of Paternity (AOP) to establish legal fatherhood because there is a difference between a legal father and a biological father. An AOP helps to secure legal rights of the child.
- Until paternity is established, child support cannot be ordered by the courts.
- Until paternity is established, the father cannot enforce his right to visitation or possession of the child.
- If paternity is established, the father can help to provide health insurance and other benefits for the child.
- Some health problems such as disorders inherited from parents do not appear later in the child's life after birth, having the medical history of both the mother and the father will help doctors to know how to treat the child.
What is included in "establishing paternity"?
After both parents sign an Acknowledgement of Paternity, it is filed with the Bureau of Vital Statistics and the biological father becomes the legal father as well. After the paternity is established, the father's name is added to the birth certificate. After being established, the father can be ordered to pay child support and grant him possession or visitation of his child.
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