Divorce

Common Law Marriage Appeal Dismissed as Interlocutory

Published on: October 6, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

The North Carolina Court of Appeals dismissed an appeal as interlocutory. The case involved a man and a woman who had lived together in Texas before moving to North Carolina. The parties moved to North Carolina, separated and the woman filed against the man for absolute divorce, post separation support, alimony and equitable distribution. She alleged that, under Texas law, the parties were common law man and wife. Of course, North Carolina does not recognize common law marriage.
The man answered and denied that the parties were married. He also raised counter claims based upon property rights, but did not raise any Chapter 50 counterclaims. The trial court determined that the parties were not married because, under Texas law, the parties were required to have a present intention to be man and wife. Apparently, the fact that they were separated and suing one another was convincing to the trial court.

Divorce No More?

Published on: September 29, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

According to a report by Reuters (‘Til 2013 do us part? Mexico mulls 2-year marriage), legislators in Mexico City are considering the concept of temporary marriage licenses. The new law would allow the couple to, on the front end, decide on how long their marriage would be. The minimum duration of of a marriage contract would be for two years – renewable upon the election of the couple. The couple would also decide, on the front end, how children and property would be handled if the contract is not renewed.

Divorce rates in Mexico City are much higher than in other parts of the country. In Mexico City, approximately half of the marriages end in divorce – often within the first two years.

Divorce Caused by Financial Infidelity?

Published on: September 1, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

We know that infidelity can lead to divorce, but what about financial infidelity? We recently discussed this issue on Charlotte Divorce Lawyer Blog in our article entitled “Are you Married to a Secret Spender?” We will look at this issue a bit more by discussing another article from Yahoo! and CNN Money entitled “Financial Infidelity: Catching a Cheating Spouse.”

This article takes a look at a recent survey about financial infidelity which was conducted by the National Endowment for Financial Education, or NEFE, a Denver, Colo.-based nonprofit. In some instances the results of this survey were very troubling.

Are you Married to a Secret Spender?

Published on: August 30, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

In a recent article by Yahoo! and CNN Money entitled “I Married a Secret Spender,” the author explores behavior of spouses or significant others who hide their spending. In some of the cases, the behavior of the “secret spender” is similar to the behavior of secret drinkers. The article explores several case studies.

In the first, the wife tells of her husband who is a secret spender. He buys new clothes and tells his wife that he had them previously. Later, though, the wife find tags for the new clothes in the garbage. This wife says that it is usually clothes but that her husband has brought home jet skis, a motorcycle and even an old Chevy Blazer. She says that they have a garage and a storage unit full of things that the husband has bought. She is concerned because she has young children who she feels might be deterimentally impacted by her husband’s spending habits.

Contempt of Court Appeal Denied

Published on: August 22, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

In the case of Raprager v. Raprager, Husband and Wife entered into a Consent Order which appears to have temporarily resolved their dispute. It required Husband to make substantial payments to Wife: $2,000 per month in spousal support, $2,000 per month in child support and $1,000 per month toward an equitable distribution distributive award in the amount of $250,000. Not long after the Consent Order, Husband filed a motion to modify child custody, child support and spousal support. Shortly after Husband filed his motion to modify, Wife filed a motion for contempt because Husband was not paying as required under the Consent Order. The Court heard Wife’s motion for contempt and found Husband to be in wilfull contempt of court and ordered him to pay $22,500 in arrears to Wife. The trial Court further ordered that if Husband did not make the payments, he was to be immediately arrested and held in Granville County Jail until he purged himself by paying the amount ordered. The trial Court did not rule on Wife’s motion for attorney’s fees associated with the motion for contempt.

Can Infidelity Help Avoid Divorce?

Published on: July 14, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

This is, admittedly, a radical notion. Particularly in Charlotte, North Carolina and surrounding areas. For goodness sake, North Carolina still recognizes Alienation of Affection and Criminal Conversation lawsuits. But, a recent article in the New York Times thoroughly explores whether infidelity might actually be good for some relationships. In this article, the author thoroughly explores the ins-and-outs of this theory. Before the reader allows her blood pressure to boil, she should read the article. The author seems to have a realistic and honest approach to the issue. One of the more important points which the author makes is that infidelity in a marriage is not for everyone.

Divorce Rates Decline

Published on: June 14, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

According to an article on Yahoo.com entitled Census: Divorces decline but 7-year itch persists, couples are slightly more likely to reach their tenth wedding anniversary. This comes after decades of steadily increasing divorce rates. The study also finds that of the first marriages that fail, most fail somewhere around seven years of marriage. Of those who remarried and subsequently separated, the second marriages tended to last four years.

Separation and Divorce Impacted by Long Commute

Published on: June 9, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

According to an article on Yahoo.com entitled Study: Long Commute Could Lead To Divorce, Separation, a new study out of Sweden suggests that long commutes increase chances of a divorce by 40 percent. This study found that the impact of a long commute tends to be higher on women than on men and that the riskiest time for a divorce is during the first few years of the long commute.

Obviously, there is no one factor which is a perfect predictor of divorce. Other factors can include things like just the opposite: transitioning to working from home after the couple is used to working outside of the house.

Divorce Financial Tips (5 of 5)

Published on: June 7, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Charlotte Divorce Lawyer Blog is exploring five Divorce Financial Tips which are outlined in an article on Yahoo.com entitled Getting a Divorce? 5 Ways to Ensure It’s Not a Financial Disaster. This final tip has more to do with one’s state of mind than it does with acts to be taken or avoided. Here it is suggested that the spouse have a mindset of fairness. Granted, what is, and is not, fair is often in the eye of the beholder.

But, the article points out that a willingness to compromise and the ability to settle things privately and out of Court can help you to avoid thousands of dollars in legal fees. Even if you can find a “Drive Thru Lawyer,” legal fees are typically pretty expensive.

Divorce Financial Tips (4 of 5)

Published on: June 2, 2011 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

According to Getting a Divorce? 5 Ways to Ensure It’s Not a Financial Disaster, the fourth bit of advice is to sell the house or other valuable assets if it is financially prudent to do so. Often times we will see people who want to hold on to the former marital home for emotional reasons. If you cannot afford it, it is typically wise to put the emotional issues aside and make the reasoned decision. This is something that a family law attorney can help you decide.