Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What can I do to gain custody of my child in North Carolina?”
It’s a common refrain among those in unhappy marriages: staying together for the sake of the kids is the right thing to do. Though it’s noble that parents are willing to sacrifice for the sake of their children, it has become clear that the sacrifice is not only not necessary, but apparently not useful. A recent study by Swedish researchers indicates that children who are the products of divorced parents turn out just as well as those with married parents. In this case, the conventional wisdom that smiling through a bad marriage is good for the kids appears not to be true.
Matt Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What are my custody rights if the other parent moves?”
The country today is a very different place than it was several decades ago. People are far more mobile, thanks to improved transportation and technology. As a result, jobs move frequently and relocations, which might have only been across town, can now involve moving thousands of miles across the country. If that happens and a custody dispute occurs between parents spread across two different states, how do you decide which state hears the case? To find out more about resolving jurisdictional disputes, keep reading.
Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “How can an attorney help me with my Divorce or Separation in North Carolina?”
A recent survey conducted by a British family law organization, Resolution, shed light on the divorce process by revealing some interesting statistics. Importantly, and unusually, the survey did not focus on the adults, but instead surveyed children, asking them their thoughts on divorce and ideas about what parents can do to make the process easier on the kids. Specifically, the group focused on hundreds of young people between the ages of 14 and 22 whose parents had gone through a divorce. To find out more about what the survey revealed about children and divorce, keep reading.
Charlotte Divorce Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What children’s expenses are covered by child support?”
In recent decades, sociological research has consistently found that couples who had a child before marriage were much more likely to divorce than couples who married first. However, according to new research released by the Council on Contemporary Families, those findings may not be accurate.
Charlotte Divorce Lawyer Matt Arnold answers the question “What rules are there for Father’s Right in NC?”
A Canadian couple recently grabbed headlines after snapping and sharing what has since been dubbed a “divorce selfie”. The picture, of the two smiling together outside a courthouse, was meant to serve as a reminder to others that divorce does not have to be terrible and can be done with grace and kindness, sparing each other and the children in the process.
Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What can I do to gain custody of my child in North Carolina?”
An organization of 6,500 divorce lawyers, mediators and therapists in England has released the results of a survey showing the effects of divorce on children, and the results have staggered even industry insiders who have long bemoaned the negative effects family separations have on young members.
The group’s director, Jo Edwards, told Yahoo Parenting that children suffer most when parents engage in angry fighting in front of them. Edwards said the effects of confrontations can be seen almost immediately, with poor test scores, the onset of eating disorders, and behavioral problems. In the long term, divorces can affect students’ performance on standardized tests, can cause children to experiment with drugs, and can affect the ability of children to develop healthy, rewarding relationships and friendships.
Edwards said that the key for parents who are going through a divorce is to not engage in conflict in the presence of children. Almost a third of children surveyed confirmed that one parent tried to turn the child against the other parent, in order to gain a leg up in the divorce proceedings. A quarter of children respondents told surveyors that one or both of their parents had tried to involve them in their marital disputes. Another quarter of respondents did not even know one or both of their parents had new romantic partners until they found out on social media.
The United Kingdom-based organization that conducted the survey—named Resolution—styles itself as promoting non-confrontational divorces and other family conflicts. The non-confrontational approach, the group believes, is a key to ensuring a divorce does not leave children with long-lasting scars.
Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What can I do to gain custody of my child in North Carolina?”
Experts have been studying—and lamenting—the effects of divorce on children for decades.
Now a Los Angeles-based psychologist is warning parents—particularly those whose children are experiencing or have recently experienced a traumatic event such as a parental divorce—to keep a sharp eye out for behavioral changes in children that may warrant enrollment in therapy.
Psychologist Jeanette Raymond told Yahoo that children are not always keen to share their emotions with their parents, particularly when their parents may be seen as the cause of upset emotions.
Parents, on the other hand, seem to be just as keen on discerning their children’s emotional condition. The bottom line from Ms. Raymond is “Your gut instinct about your child is usually right.” If you suspect your child is not taking a divorce or parental split well, you may need to consider therapeutic treatment for your child.
Not every child is the same, and the circumstances that inform each child’s emotional well-being vary dramatically depending on a child’s age and surroundings, however Raymond identified a number of warning signs for parents to watch out for when going through a divorce.
Board Certified Family Law Specialist Matt Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “My wife and I are not getting along If I leave the house, can she get me for abandonment?”
The least complicated—and least controversial—aspect of a new study of possible causes of divorce is the recitation of a long-recognized statistical truth that marriages featuring first-born daughters are more likely to end in divorce than those featuring first-born sons. The recent study—by Duke University researchers Amar Hamoudi and Jenna Nobles—pushed back the clock, so to speak, to try to explain the disparity.
The study by Hamoudi and Nobles expands on the widely-accepted concept that girls and women of all ages are more likely than boys or men to make it to their next birthday. This concept is known as the “characteristic female survival advantage.” While this survival advantage has been well documented outside of the womb, Hamoudi and Nobles studied what happens inside the womb—all the way back to the moment of fertilization.
The researchers found evidence suggesting that female embryos are better able to withstand maternal stress in utero than male embryos. A female fetus, therefore, is more likely to make it to birth than a male counterpart whose mother is experiencing relationship stress. The researchers studied data from the 1979-2010 National Longitudinal Study of Youth. From the study, they deduced that couples who argued frequently during a pregnancy were more likely to have a firstborn daughter than a son. Males are less likely to survive the stressful atmosphere in utero.
Hamoudi said the research neither proves that daughters cause divorce nor that they do not cause it. Instead, he cautioned those who would draw hasty conclusions from the statistical correlation between firstborn daughters and divorce. Many people have suggested that girls, by their nature, have a negative impact on the stability of their parents’ unions. Hamoudi said his study should put an end to that assumption.
Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What does uncontested divorce mean?”
A judge in Tennessee has reversed the ruling of a chancery court judge from Cocke County regarding the ability of a couple to name their 8-month-old son “Messiah.” The case began last month when the boy’s mother and father were in court arguing over the child’s last name. Oddly enough, the two had actually agreed that the boy’s first name would be Messiah.
While in court, Child Support Magistrate Lu Ann Ballew said that she was offended by the name choice and said that the child should instead be called “Martin.” Ballew based her decision on the religiosity of those living in the rural area of the state, saying that the child might have a hard time being raised in an area that is so predominantly Christian. Ballew told the parents that “Messiah” is a title and the title has only been earned by one person, Jesus Christ.
The parents were shocked to discover they could not name their child as they wished and appealed the decision. The mother’s attorney said they appealed because the couple was in agreement about the first name and had never chosen it for religious reasons. Instead, the mother claims she thought that the word sounded nice.
Just this past week Chancellor Telford Fogerty overturned Ballew’s initial decision, deciding that the lower court acted unconstitutionally in changing the child’s name to Martin. Judge Fogerty said that the lower court’s decision amounted to a violation of the establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution and added that the purpose of the proceeding was to determine the child’s last name, not to litigate the appropriateness of the child’s first name. The Establishment Clause, one of the first pronouncements contained in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, says that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion. This has generally been interpreted to prohibit the establishment of a national religion by Congress and to prevent the preference by the U.S. government of one religion over another. Given that the lower judge’s ruling was based on Christian theology and not the law, Judge Fogerty had no choice but to reverse course. And just like that, Martin was turned back into Messiah.
Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “How is the amount of child support decided in North Carolina?”
A recent Yahoo article discussed a Tennessee judge’s recent decision to prevent a couple from naming their seven-month-old son ‘Messiah’. The magistrate judge from Newport, TN instead changed the boy’s name to Martin, saying that Messiah was reserved for Jesus Christ and him alone.
Oddly enough, the matter ended up before the judge due to a fight between his parents over the child’s last name. While they both agreed on ‘Messiah’, they wanted the judge to settle the dispute over their son’s last name. When the judge heard the child’s first name, she decided that it needed changing too. Ultimately, the judge settled on Martin DeShawn McCullough, a name that incorporates the last names of both parents.
The judge said her decision to change the child’s name was the first time she has ever issued such an order. The judge said that if the child is raised in Cocke County, TN the name could end up causing him trouble later in life due to the area’s large Christian population. The judge said since the child was too young to have say in the matter, changing the name to something less controversial was an important step to spare the child of a potentially difficult future.
The child’s mother said that she intends to appeal the decision, claiming that she chose Messiah not for religious reasons but because she thought it sounded like a good name. According to a list compiled by the Social Security Administration, Messiah ranked number four on the 2012 list of fastest-rising baby names.
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