Military divorces often differ
from divorces where both spouses are civilians. A
divorce involving military service members and/or the
spouse of a service member may be obtained in either an
uncontested action or a contested proceeding.
Every divorce is unique to the
facts of the marriage.
However, military divorces
typically involve unique issues
requiring legal counsel
specifically experienced in
handling divorces involving
military personnel, non-military
spouses of military personnel,
and military dependents.
Failure to address the unique
issues that may arise in a
military divorce can be
problematic and may result in
the loss of one of the parties
rights to certain benefits if
the same are not properly
addressed in the divorce.
To dissolve your marriage by an
uncontested divorce both parties to the marriage must agree on all issues. For simplicity purposes, the areas that must be agreed upon include how the parties will divide all marital assets and all marital debts, meaning who will receive what assets and who will pay what debts, and in what specific amounts. In an uncontested divorce, the parties are free to divide assets in essentially any manner they desire so long as each party agrees. Similarly, the parties are free to divide the debt of the marriage in any manner they desire. The parties' to be divorced must then have their agreement reduced to a written document known as a "marital dissolution agreement," also commonly referred to as a "MDA."
If you and your spouse can not agree to end the marriage
in an uncontested fashion; if one of the parties does
not want a divorce; or, if an agreement cannot be
reached as to either how assets, or debts will be
divided, or as to how any issue regarding the children
will be resolved, the marriage cannot be dissolved
in an uncontested divorce. Instead, a
contested divorce will have to be sought if a divorce is to occur.
In a contested divorce the party requesting the divorce
must prove that a ground for the divorce exists.
The time that it will take
for a contested divorce to
be obtained if a ground can
be proven often depends upon
the actions taken by the
parties during the
litigation, the specific
issues that will be
addressed in the suit,
and the specific court in
which the divorce is filed.
As a general rule, the more
issues that are involved and
disputed, the longer it will
take to prepare the case for
trial. As the time and
work required by a contested
divorce is greater than that
required by an uncontested
divorce, a contested divorce
is typically more expensive
than an uncontested divorce.
These and all other issues
involved in military divorces should be addressed
with an attorney regardless of whether an uncontested or
contested divorce will be sought. Failure to fully
inform yourself of the law and your rights can lead to
needless stress and anxiety and may have serious
consequences. Should you retain me to represent you in
this difficult time, you will receive individual
attention and will be advised as to all applicable
options in your case and the potential benefits and
detriments of decisions that will have to be made.
An action to either obtain, or to retain
custody of your child or children is a complex, trying,
and emotionally charged undertaking requiring
experienced and effective legal counsel.
Generally, custody suits are difficult and hard fought
by both sides as each side wishes to be the custodian
(now known as the primary residential parent), of the
children. Due to the complexity of custody actions
there is no substitute for knowledgeable, experienced
counsel who routinely handle custody cases.
For simplicity purposes,
custody cases are classified
here in two categories: (1)
original custody actions;
and, (2) actions seeking to
change a prior custody
determination.
An original custody action
involves the court's initial
placement of the child or
children with one parent.
This original placement will
be made by the court based
upon the "best
interest" of the
child/children and a
"comparative
fitnessevaluation"
in which the court compares
and contrasts the parties to
determine who is most fit to
be the custodian (i.e. the
primary residential parent),
of the
child/children. Determinations
of the "best
interests" of the
children and decisions as to
"comparative
fitness" entail numerous
facts and considerations and you should seek legal
counsel for a more detailed explanation and analysis of
your case.
In an action to change
custody, the party wishing to change
custody has the burden of proving that the "best
interest" of the
children require the change.
This person for legal
purposes is often called the
"movant." If the
"movant" fails to carry his
or her burden by presenting
sufficient evidence, custody
will not be changed.
As such, to have custody
changed the party wishing
the change must first prove
by the preponderance of the
evidence presented that a "material
changeof
circumstanceshas
occurred" that did not
exist when the court entered its prior custody order.
The party with whom the child or children do not
primarily reside has a legal right to have
visitation
with his/her children. This right is not
forfeited by failure to pay child support, although a
subsequent legal action to terminate child support
may be filed after a sufficient period of non-payment
and failure to exercise visitation. Whether or not
parental rights of the non-custodial parent will be
forfeited in such an action is dependant upon the facts,
whether the requisite legal requirements to terminate
may be established, and the discretion of the court.
However, short of a judicial determination terminating
the non-custodial parent's rights in the children, an
adoption, or such other judicial order restricting the
non-custodial parent's right to exercise visitation,
visitation with the children cannot be denied.
Following the placement of a
child or children after a
divorce or an order of
custody (or designation of a
primary residential parent),
the parent/custodian with
whom the child or children
primarily reside may decide
to relocate with the children to
another city or state.
Such intention often results
in legal action. The
farther the move, the more
intense the opposition will
likely be because of the
move's effect on visitation
and the ability of the other
parent to foster and
maintain an appropriate
relationship with his or her
child or children.
The purpose of alimony is to rehabilitate a
disadvantaged spouse who will suffer financially
following a divorce if financial assistant is not
provided in the form of alimony. Generally,
a spouse is disadvantaged when he or she has unequal
education, work or vocational skills and experience, or
is otherwise economically disadvantaged when compared to
the other spouse. In such cases, alimony may be
sought from the other spouse as a component of the
divorce action. Alimony is not automatically
awarded in a divorce and there are different types of
alimony.
As alimony is a complex and important issue that can
result in significant financial benefit or consequences,
I encourage you to discuss your divorce and alimony
issues with an experienced attorney.
All children deserve a safe, loving, and
supportive family. Through the process of
adoption or surrogacy a legal relationship is
established between both the child or children to be
adopted and the new adoptive parent and/or parents.
This relationship is life-long once established and
affects the legal rights of the adopted child, the
adopting parent, and the prior biological
parent/parents. Once an adoption is approved, the
child adopted becomes the legal child of the adopting
party, the same as if the child were born to that
individual. The child may thereafter inherit from
the adopting party just as if he or she had been the
naturally born child of the adopting person. The
child may not inherit from his or her prior biological
parent whose legal rights/parental rights to the child
have been terminated in the adoption.
Surrogacy Law is complex and requires an attorney with
the experience to set a plan of action between all
parties involved, create contracts to determine details,
and file and manage the legal paperwork involved in a
surrogacy situation.
Military Divorce