The Articles of Confederation, our nation’s first “constitution,” were badly flawed. Each state could have set up tolls and tariffs at its borders, so a sack of Virginia peanuts traveling to New York could have had an expensive and perilous journey. Today interstate laws provide for the smooth flow of goods and services between the states. That flow includes child ...
ZIP stands for Zone Improvement Plan. Since 1963, the U.S. Postal Service has assigned those five-digit numbers to areas to speed up mail delivery. If you know someone’s address, you can serve them divorce papers. That is one of seven ways to serve process. I Know Where You Live The law requires a person who is the subject of a ...
One of the best ways, when working through separation and divorce, to support your children and maintain those all-important family bonds is through open decision-making and clear communication. Whether that means joint physical custody or shared legal custody, or even sole physical custody with thorough, informal discussions, both parents must agree to work in the best interests of the child, ...
Good news! Adultery no longer exists in the military. Well, okay, they renamed it “extramarital sexual conduct” in the latest revisions to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), but still, it doesn’t say adultery! Performing the Poking Polka is still illegal and likely to get you in a whole lot of trouble, but only under some very specific circumstances. ...
You think you live in Virginia and the other parent of your kids thinks she or he lives in South Carolina. You’re wrong: you both live in UIFSA. UIFSA has only one state and expects parents owing child support to pay it, regardless of either parent’s address. UIFSA: The Uniform Interstate Family Support Act UIFSA stands for the Uniform Interstate ...
An oxymoron is an inherently contradictory phrase, like jumbo shrimp, acting naturally, and legal brief. One thing attorneys are not is brief. Though we don’t get paid by the word, we often write as if we do. Why? To protect everyone in every legal matter. That is why we bravely put our names down as attorneys of record. So, just ...
You and your spouse have agreed to separate. Bags in hand, standing at the front door, she tosses you one parting bombshell: she will expect spousal support throughout the months of your separation. Then, after the divorce is final, she will expect more spousal support. Can she expect that? Who Gave the Marching Orders? The law does not care who ...
Now I lay me down to sleep, but Dad’s new girlfriend is a creep. Abraham Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs,” helps people differentiate between needs and wants, and to make clear that some needs are basic and biological: food, water, safety, warmth, and rest. We may want a separate bedroom for our visiting children to get their rest, but is it ...
Hollywood screenwriters are clearly masochists. A Hollywood disaster flick will send hordes of zombies into a burning hi-rise orphanage during an earthquake. Estate planning during your Virginia divorce, though? Not even a Hollywood script writer would dare such a thing. Protecting Yourself on Multiple Fronts If you feel like your divorce is more than you can handle, you may be ...