To follow up on a previous article on the Charlotte Divorce Lawyer Blog, in December, the North Carolina Supreme Court voided the adoption of a child by a lesbian mother who was raising the child with her former partner. This case, discussed in a previous post, involved two women who were litigating custody issues after a so-called “second parent adoption” in 2005. Melissa Jarrell, the ex-partner of former North Carolina Senator Julia Boseman, is the biological mother of the child. The women planned for a child together, and Jarrell consented to Boseman adopting the child in 2005, as a 3-year-old. The couple broke up in 2006, and Jarrell petitioned for sole custody, claiming that the adoption should never have been granted because North Carolina law does not permit second parent adoptions. The trial court and the Court of Appeals upheld the adoption. The Supreme Court overturned the ruling with regard to the adoption, but upheld the ruling granting Boseman joint custody.

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Think you’ve seen some unusual divorce settlements in the United States? A recent judgment out of China might take the prize for the most unusual. In December, a judge in China denied a divorcing woman’s claim that she owned half of the “virtual assets” accrued during her marriage.

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According to Jeff Bridges, for has been married for an almost-unheard-of-in-Hollywood 33 years, “one of the things about staying married is just not getting divorced.” If that isn’t enough of an endorsement, the past year has shown us that most celebrities can’t resist tying the knot a time or two. For example, Hugh Hefner recently announced his engagement to 24-year-old Crystal Harris, who will become his third wife later this year.

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The past few years have demonstrated to all of us that people really enjoy reading about marital strife and breakdowns. Couples can air their grievances on social networking websites, such as Facebook and Twitter, and many people have chosen to vent through more revealing outlets, such as personal blogs. Recently, one Los Angeles Dodgers fan and law student decided to start a blog (www.dodgerdivorce.com) analyzing the legal issues and drama in the bitter divorce proceedings between Frank and Jamie McCourt, the Dodgers’ owners.

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) just released new figures in December which compared the health of children in all types of living situations. The data demonstrates that children who live in the same home as their parents have a lower rate of disease and sickness. The ailments documented included asthma, vision problems, developmental delays, ADHD, and migraines. These ailments were far more present in the homes of children who live with only one parents, even when wealth and education were factored in.

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According to the Journal of Family Issues, which conducted an ongoing analysis of student financial aid statistics, divorced parents usually contribute less toward their children’s college costs, as opposed to parents who are still married. The study reports that a student whose parents are divorced will end up paying about 58% of all of his or her own college expenses. If the student’s parents are remarried to new spouses, the student will pay about 47%. However, if a student’s parents are married and living together, the percentage drops to a mere 23% of college expenses.

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Charlotte Observer.jpg According to an article by the Charlotte Observer, a Michigan man is charged with a felony and facing up to five years in prison for accessing his wife’s gmail account. The man used a laptop computer which the parties shared in their home and her password to access the email account. Of course, he discovered that she was having an adulterous relationship. The wife filed for divorce, which went through in November, and the husband was charged with a felony. The husband is scheduled to go to trial in February 2011.

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In this issue we address how the use of prenuptial agreements is growing in popularity. We also consider how termination of parental rights actions are being used in the context of grandparent visitation. We address various financial consideration as they factor (or maybe not?) into divorce proceedings.

Click here to view and print our Charlotte Divorce Attorney Blog Family Law Newsletter – Winter 2011:

CHARLOTTE DIVORCE LAWYER BLOG FAMILY LAW NEWSLETTER WINTER 2011

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