A series of posts with quoted case law and other legislative references, plus analysis of the case
An article on the Huffington Post gave me pause just now. The author Fred Silberberg stated that in New York you can get divorced and the public has no right to be there in the court room. That the court proceedings are not open to the public. I was not aware of that. I have …
Read moreThe no-fault divorce revisited: Is your divorce anyone else's business?
I confess that I don’t really know anything about Katy Perry. I’ve heard her name and I know she sings but beyond that, nada. Don’t follow the girl, couldn’t identify a song as being hers, and probably never will. But I know she’s huge and I see her in the gossip magazines and I know …
NEW YORK DIVORCE & THE GIFT TAX With some exceptions, any transfer of property is subject to the gift tax, including transfers made pursuant to a settlement agreement in a divorce action. That is the general rule. So generally, your settlement agreement would, or is supposed to be, subject to the gift tax as prescribed by …
The Justice Department appeals repeal of DOMA The Justice Department has filed an appeal in the First Circuit, appealing 2 Massachusetts rulings that basically finds DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act) unconstitutional, on several fronts. The district court had found DOMA unconstitutional on several grounds: For one thing, it violates the Equal Protection Clause. But it …
The demise of Elizabeth Edwards in 2011 inspired this post about divorce and inheritance rights. The question presented is what are surviving spouses like John Edwards’ rights, if any, to the estate of their deceased spouse? The rule may vary state to state, but in New York, as a general rule, the surviving spouse has …
Read moreDeath, Divorce & Inheritance Rights: What are you entitled to?
The question is whether a divorce litigant can move to have the judge in the case substituted for another judge. The answer is: It depends. For example, I’m not 100% sure about mid-trial substitutions as of right. I think that is discretionary and I think it depends on the court, on the situation, on the evidence …
Read moreThe judge hates you? Can you substitute him for a more impartial judge?
CIVIL PRACTICE LAWS AND RULES 2301-2308 So, what can you do when your estranged spouse subpoenas documents or individuals in your divorce action and puts you in the hot seat? Well, that’s always annoying. But it is a good idea to accept that divorce is a swamp from which there is often no way to emerge …
Read moreDivorce Subpoenas: What to do when your soon to be ex issues a subpoena in a divorce case
The UCCJEA is a really convoluted statute that has a lot of moving parts. But essentially, the idea is that you can’t just relocate with a child or kidnap a child and think you will get away with it, and think you can haul the other parent in a foreign forum to defend a child …
Read moreUCCJEA: What this statute says about kidnapping children and taking them across state lines
This Connecticut case raised the age old question of how to get out of a properly executed prenup. The court of appeals basically decided, you can’t. Roberta Delente, 42, was a Brazilian model who was married to Peter McKenna, a partner in a law firm. The two executed a prenup 5 days prior to their …
Not much else needs to be said about this. We agree with this ruling from the New York Court of Appeals. http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202464323800&NY_Appeals_Court_Affirms_Lesbians_Duty_to_Pay_Child_Support